Category Archives: The Wine World

Wine with lunch or lunch with wine?

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Last week, I had the pleasure of attending a trade event featuring Monika Caha Selections’ Austrian Wine Portfolio at Telepan restaurant. The event began at 11:30, whereby we were invited to begin tasting through Monika’s portfolio. I had tasted through 29 wines before we were called to sit for lunch, missing out on four red wines and two dessert wines.

The represented wines included those from: Johann Donabaum, Forstreiter, Fritsch, Graf Hardegg, Anita & Hans Nittnaus, Stadlmann and Weninger. The white wines featured were Gruner Veltliners, which is the iconic grape of Austria, along with Rieslings and one Viognier (which came as a surprise to me). With one exception (Graf Hardegg’s Weisse Reserve vom Schloss), all of the wines were single varietals. The featured reds were less homogenous with Zweigelt, Blaufrankisch, St. Laurent and Pinot Noir available to taste.

As we retired to the dining room for lunch, we selected two adjacent seats at a booth, at which a gentleman had staked his claim to the other two. Upon being seated, we introduced ourselves and made the acquaintance of Howard Goldberg (wine journalist for the New York Times) and David Rosengarten (food, wine and cooking authority). They were both charming company.

The five-course luncheon was expertly executed, with each course paired with one – two wines, making 37 wines my grand total for the afternoon. I was particularly pleased with the Egg in a Hole, which was a dish featuring a fried egg, hen-of-the-woods mushrooms, wild spinach and toasted garlic. All in all, it was a lovely afternoon, with the opportunity to taste a wonderful collection of Austrian wines and gain additional evidence as to how well these wines pair with food.

Oregon Today, Here Tomorrow

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I’m a bit late in posting to really use this title as I have been back from Oregon for nearly a week now, but I couldn’t resist using another state-related headline, so please forgive me.

Anyway, we spent the Labor Day weekend in Ashland, OR visiting with my parents who have retired out there. Ashland is in the southern part of the state, just north of the California border. The wine area is situated within the Rogue Valley, which also includes a sub-AVA, the Applegate Valley.

We did not spend a lot of time visiting wineries because my parents provided us with a packed agenda including white water rafting, a picnic in Crater Lake National Park, a show at Ashland’s renouned Shakespeare Festival and a tour of the town and surrounding environs. Additionally, on occasion, it is nice to take a break from wine, once in awhile.

Well, we didn’t actually take a break. However, instead of going to the wine (aka visiting wineries) we made the wine come to us (ordering it in restaurants, drinking from my parents’ cellar, and buying a bottle or two at the wine store). We primarily drank local wines and tried to choose ones that weren’t readily available nationwide.

At the wine store, we consciously strayed further afield, chosing a Pinot Noir from the Willamette Valley, which is located in northern Oregon, just south of Portland. Due to its warmer and drier climate, the Rogue Valley isn’t known for its Pinot Noir the way Willamette is, so this was a safer bet if we wanted to drink Pinot.

The wine selection was from Bergstrom, a small, family-owned winery, and was their entry-level wine (not one of their single vineyard designations). At $29.00, it was on the steep side of my parents’ wine bottle budget, but since we were guests in their home, they were willing to make the purchase. Fortunately, none of us were disappointed as we enjoyed the wine later in the day, paired with cheeses from the local Rogue Creamery, artisan bread and a spread from Rising Sun winery and farm.

The visit to Rising Sun permitted me the opportunity to taste through a flight of several local wines as did visits to Roxy Ann Winery and Eden Vale Estate. Okay, I guess we really can’t stay away from wine for long. The one concession we did make to being on vacation was not taking any tasting notes, so I can’t remember which specific wines were tasted, but we had Viognier, Riesling, Merlot, Sangiovese and Syrah among others.

Our restaurant experience was quite nice, where we selected a Pinot Bianco from Camaron Winery (Oregon state AVA) and a Pinot Noir from Brandborg (Umpqua Valley). Both were lovely, but we were particularly impressed with the Brandborg as the Umpqua Valley is also not as known for its Pinot Noir as Willamette. The wine was a wonderful with my King salmon; Pinot Noir and salmon being a classic Oregon pairing.

Overall, it was a great first visit to my parents’ new home and community, filled with a sufficient quantity of wine for what wasn’t supposed to be a wine weekend.

A Sneak Peek

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I had the pleasure of attending a preview for a new restaurant, which opens tonight — Accademia di Vino, which translates as Wine School. The Italian restaurant is located at 1081 Third Avenue, New York, between 63rd and 64th Streets.

The decor is absolutely beautiful, with the tone set from the exterior and carried throughout the bar and dining areas. Much (all?) of the tile and stone was important from Italy and the rich, dark wood and burnt sienna walls create an intimate and inviting atmosphere.

Dinner itself was wonderful. We started with salad. My guest ordered the Endive salad, while I chose the Arugula, Cremini mushroom and Parmesan salad, drizzled with lemon vinaigrette. It was fresh and bright, with the acidity from the lemon matching nicely with the bitter arugula. We then shared a thin-crust, (brick-oven?) pizza with Sopressata and Red Peppers. As our main courses, my friend had the orrichiette (sp?) with sausage and brocolli rabe, which she enjoyed very much. I had the veal chop, which was tender and full of flavor. After panna cotta (me) and creme brulee with passion fruit sorbet (my friend), we rolled out the door, stomachs heavier, but hearts light.

I have yet to see the full wine list as they were only serving a limited selection, but I am confident that it will be a terrific assortment of food-friendly, Italian wines. As Schwartzenager was wont to say, "I’ll be back!"

Missouri loves company?

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I was in Kansas City, MO this past weekend for a business trip and visited the hotel’s rooftop, revolving restaurant for a glass of wine before heading off to bed. My wine of choice was a Chenin Blanc from Stellenbosch, South Africa, which was a nice refreshing drink to counter the heat of the day. However, in perusing the wine list, I couldn’t help, but notice the offering from Missouri.

While MO doesn’t spring to mind as a world wine capital, the novelty was appealing and I couldn’t resist ordering a taste from my server. (When in Rome?) I am advised that it is a red, dessert wine, so I wait until I finish the dry, Chenin Blanc before taking the plunge.

The aromas are clean and youthful, but somewhat confected with notes of candied raspberry and cherry. On the palate, the wine is off-dry to medium-sweet (actually a lot less sweet than I had expected), with medium body, medium alcohol and low acidity. The medium intense flavors are of cherry with a medicinal or cough syrup character, followed by a bitter almond finish. The medium+ length is not as welcome as it might be due to the cloying and syrupy nature of the wine, lacking in overall structure, particularly acidity.

The wine was Harvest Red from Mount Pleasant Winery of Augusta, MO. This was actually the very first American Viticultural Area (AVA) enacted in the U.S. (1980). According to the winery’s website, the wine is a blend of St. Vincent and Couderc grapes. It was $6.00/glass on the Hyatt’s menu, but, thankfully, the server didn’t charge me for the taste-sized portion; it retails for $7.99 on the winery’s website.

For more information about Missouri wines, see: Missouri Wine Country.

Parlour Games

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We had a lovely dinner with our friends, Dave and Monique, on Tuesday evening. We headed to Smith Street in the Carroll Gardens neighborhood of Brooklyn, near their apartment and the restaurant of choice was Chestnut, which we enjoyed very much.

Having dined there previously, Dave and Monique were familiar with the owner. When he came over to our table, Monique introduced me to him, noting my current academic study of wine. We chatted for a few moments, at which point he asked if I would like to play a game of blind tasting. While I don’t usually prefer to engage in such parlour tricks, he stressed that it was all in good fun. His low key attitude, coupled with the opportunity for everyone at our table to taste a gratis glass of wine, prompted me to consent.

A few minutes later, our server brought over four glasses of the mystery wine and we all began to taste. I did not easily recognize the wine, so I began to try and narrow it down. I had the Old World in mind and then my husband suggested it might be Italy due to its high acidity. I concurred and considered it might be Sangiovese or Barbera, both of which I had noticed earlier on the wine list.

When the owner expectantly returned to our table, I proferred the Sangiovese choice, while my husband guessed the Barbera. Both of us were wrong. In fact, the wine turned out to be a Chinon, which is produced from the Cabernet Franc grape. The two of us were a little surprised because we are big fans of the Cabernet Franc grape and hadn’t picked up on any of the classic indications of this grape such as herbal or earthy notes. We certainly didn’t expect to guess correctly, but attributed some of our error to the wine being somewhat atypical in its style. The online wine menu doesn’t seem to completely match what I recall from the restaurant, but the mystery wine might have been: Chinon – Domaine du Raifault 2004 France.

This atypicity in wine is becoming more common with the internationalization of wine trending toward the "international style." So much so, that a Master Sommelier recently revealed that the panel of examiners for the MS exam has to taste through a dozen or more wines to come to consensus in finding a single wine that is deemed to be a typical example and thus, included in the blind tasting exam.

However, whether or not it was a typical Chinon, it is clear that I still need to work on my deductive skills in identifying wines in blind tastings. I did attend two sessions at the SWE Conference on this topic, both of which provided good advice. Of course, in the end, the only way to truly excel at this skill is the same way one gets to Carnegie Hall…practice, practice, practice!

Access Hollywood?

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In what I surmise to be an April Fool’s joke, Decanter announced this morning that Paris Hilton would be the new face for Bordeaux. Not realizing that today was April 1 (wasn’t it just March, yesterday?), I immediately took the story at face value, but once I made the connection to the holiday, I had to laugh at my expense. The proposed tasteless tagline for the ad campaign: ‘Paris: One Night in Bordeaux’ should have tipped me off straight away, but it is early Sunday morning.

Yes, it is quite absurd that the prim and proper Bordelais would even consider identifying themselves with such a celebrity as Paris. However, the idea itself isn’t as crazy as it might seem. Whether you are a Paris fan (the socialite, not the city of lights) or not, it is undeniable that she sets trends and can be very influential, especially among younger consumers. Consequently, the use of Paris’ star power could be a big coup in terms of reaching Generation Y/Millennial consumers, who are only beginning to get into wine. This could be especially beneficial in terms of educating them about the Cru Bourgeois (if that ever gets settled) and generic-level Bordeaux wines, which are at more reasonable prices and need to find a market to relieve their overflowing wine lake.

In any case, it’s nice to see that Decanter has a sense of humor.

Secrets Revealed

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I recently received an e-mail from a publisher asking me to read and review a new wine book, "1000 Best Wine Secrets" written by Carolyn Hammond. In the interest of full disclosure, the book was sent to me gratis.

The book is made up of thirty chapters, which each include several itemsthat generally entail two-three sentences on a given point. The items are each numbered for a total of 1,000.

The title is a bit of a misnomer in that the numbered items aren’t really secrets, as in secret #14, "Above all else, trust your own palate. Everyone’s tasting experience is unique; a trusted critic an offer guidance, but rely on your own taste buds to decide if a wine is worth buying." While I agree that the statement is good advice, I wouldn’t classify it as a secret, nor would I classify most of the helpful tips listed in the book as secrets. However, I suppose "secrets" makes for better book marketing than "tips."

As an educator and Diploma student, this is not a book that I would choose to read as the presentation of the information is primarily surface-level, without much detail on any given subject. However, others might find my "go-to" books to be daunting and/or dull and may find that this format is much more their style. Accordingly, as the content is well-written and engaging, I find it hard to dismiss it out of hand.

If a reader were looking for short doses of wine education, s/he might find it a useful format. In their fast-paced, "I want it now" mentality, this style would seem to work especially well with the Millennial generation. In terms of the content itself, the book would be more appropriate for the novice looking for quick answers rather than the serious wine student given the limited depth to which topics are presented. To its credit, the book has a very detailed index, making it very user-friendly as a brief reference guide. The book also includes a listing of Carolyn’s 50 best wine recommendations under $20.00, which readers might also find useful.

My Namesake?

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Sunday’s edition of the Mercury News announced the formal recognition of a new AVA, Tracy Hills, located in California.

An AVA is an American Viticultural Area, which essentially is a de-limited geographic area, which has a common set of characteristics that tie the area together and set it apart from other ares with respect to its wine growing capabilities.

All potential AVAs must be submitted to the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau for approval and some do not gain recognition. While other countries have their own geographical wine regions, AVAs are specific to the U.S. There are presently about 200 AVAs in the U.S., with new ones being added from time to time, as in the case of Tracy Hills. The use of an AVA on the wine’s label is limited to wines with a minimum of 85% of grapes grown in that AVA.

Unlike their counterparts in Europe, American winemakers are not bound by a set of viticultural and vinification rules within their given AVA. American vineyards and wineries are free to plant whichever grape varieties in whatever manner they choose. Conversely, the vineyard owner in Bordeaux or Burgundy is limited, by law, in plantings, vine density, yield, vinification techniques and other wine producing parameters, if they wish to include their appellation of origin on their labels.

An AVA such as Tracy Hills doesn’t have much name recognition now, but many of the AVAs within the Sonoma and Napa Valleys are well-known and help to sell the wine by virtue of their presence on the label. However, in America, brand names (i.e. Mondavi, Gallo) seem to hold more importance for the consumer than grape origin, especially if the wine is varietally-labeled.

Finding Spain – Off the Beaten Path

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I recently attended the Wines from Spain trade show held at the Metropolitan Pavillion in Manhattan, where I had the opportunity to taste a wide range of Spanish wines. There were quite a few Rias Baixas wines, about which I have previously written, so it seems that this wine may be among the new trends and, thus, finding more opportunities in the U.S. consumer market.

Among the other whites I tasted is a wine from the DO (Denomination of Origin / Vinos de Denominación de Origen)* of Bizkaiko Txakolina. I admit that the name looks quite daunting, but this region, found within the northwestern Basque Country of Spain, is producing some lovely wines.

The wine in question was made from an indigenous grape called Hondarrabi Zuri (the red variety is known as Hondarrabi Beltza) and the producer is Itsas Mendi. I was advised by the distributor (Winebow) that enologist Ana Martin is among the few (only?) female winemakers in the area and is gaining a very favorable reputation for her wines. 

Given the volume of wines tasted that afternoon and the format in which these events are held (dozens of booths, with 5-10 wines at each), I can’t provide specific notes on the wine. However, I do know that I found it to be fresh and fruity, with crisp acidity and was quite impressed. If you are interested in trying this wine for yourself, my quick websearch found it available at Appellation NYC, but you can contact the distributor to find it at a shop or restaurant near you. 

This grape has but the briefest of entries in Jancis Robinson, MW’s Oxford Companion to Wine, noting only that it is a light-berried Basque variety. Accordingly, such a wine is the perfect antidote to mass-produced, international style wines that belie their origin and could come from anywhere.

*NB: DO wines are those from a demarcated production area and are governed by a set of regulations, which are designed to ensure quality. This is the Spanish equivalent of France’s Appellation d’Origin Controllee (AOC) legislation. However, Spain also has a "super category" of DO wine regions, labeled as DOCa (Vinos de Denominación de Origen Calificada), which are governed by even more stringent regulations and are deemed to be of the highest quality.  For more information on Spanish wine laws, see the Wines from Spain website.

Understanding Terroir

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Terroir. This term is bandied about in the wine community, but the concept of terroir can often be difficult to understand. What exactly is terroir?

Terroir is that combination of factors that makes a wine uniquely from a particular place. It is the reason that Chardonnay wines from Burgundy are different from Chardonnay wines from California. And, even more precisely, why Bugundian Chardonnay is different from Chablis, which is north of Burgundy (despite both being made from the Chardonnay grape).

Moreover, it is the reason that Chardonnays from Burgundy are called white Burgundies and not Chardonnay. The elements that exist in the particular region and ultimately, in the particular vineyard constitute the environment, which influences the final outcome and its expression of the terroir.

A similar approach might be applied to people as an illustration of this concept. Certainly, we all know that each person is unique and their journey into adulthood is influenced by a combination of nature (genetics) and nurture (environment). While scientists will debate as to how much one overrides the other, I believe most would agree that environment certainly plays at least a partial role in the final outcome in creating a fully-formed adult.

With wine, there are six factors that are responsible for the finished product: variety, soil, climate, annual weather conditions, viticultural practices and vinification practices. For people, gender could be akin to the variety. As a person is born and raised into a specific family/household, this might be considered their soil.

A person’s climate would include all of the aspects of their situation: living in the city vs country; residing in a house vs apartment; living far or near from water, mountains and other elements of nature, as well as all of the external elements in their life — schooling, neighborhood, etc. Each of these factors will eventually influence the type of person one becomes and will be expressed in their personality and actions.

Annual weather conditions could entail both mundane and important events characterizing one’s life. Was one’s life relatively boring? Did they fail math in 8th grade? Fall off their bike at age 10? Watch their parents divorce at 16? Fall madly in love at 18?

Viticultural practices are similar to parenting skills. In the vineyard, how the vines are tended is very important. Likewise, the way a person is raised will affect their outcome. For example, a person with more lenient parents will react differently to life than a person with stricter parental rules.

Generally, the final factor, vinification practices, is not really an element of terroir. However, to carry the analogy to completion, it would seem that decisions made in adulthood: if and where to attend college, if and whom to marry, if and when to have children, career choices, etc. will provide the final influence on the person.

Although this is an imperfect analogy, I hope that it can shed at least some light on the concept of terroir, which should provide you with an appreciation for the differences in various wines.