Revisiting Australia with Hope Estate

Australian wine played a major role in the early days of my wine education. I was in graduate school, invited to one of my first “grownup” parties. The party was hosted by the boyfriend of one of my classmates, a debonair business sort who hailed from Sydney. He’d bought the local wine store out of Jacob’s Creek and Penfolds, it seemed. I was a beer guy at the time, but was always willing to drink for free learn about new drinks.

After that, Shiraz from Australia became one of my “have a bottle lying around” reds – largely because it was decent, inexpensive, and easy to drink. The Sweet Partner in Crime (who also has an Australian wine history thanks to her stint as a server at Outback back in the day…) and I went through our courtship consuming copious quantities of Rosemount Estates’ Grenache-Shiraz.

But times change and palates change. Most of the Australian wine available in my price range for many years was relatively uninteresting – big jammy reds, semi-sweet Rieslings, and steel tank one-note Chardonnay were always available. A friend of mine in the wine business referred to the inexpensive Australian juice as “Pop-Tart Wine” – because every flavor basically tasted the same. There were some higher quality Australian reds to sample, but many of them were out of our price range at that point. As my wine education took my palate to different areas of the world, Australian wine largely dropped off my radar.

Until recently, that is. My recent dispatches about the wine shortages brought about by climate change in North America and Europe prompted me to start looking below the equator for better wine values. Fortuitously, the wine fairy dropped off a package of wines from Hope Estates in Australia’s Hunter Valley, in New South Wales near Sydney.

Hope Estate, founded by Michael Hope in 1992, started as a single vineyard, but has expanded to an entertainment complex which includes a brewery, a café, and a 20,000 seat amphitheater – if you’re ever in the neighborhood. A four pack of Hope Estates wines got me rethinking the lack of Australian wine in my portfolio, as they were all quite good and sit at a nice price point:

Hope Estates 2016 Wollombi Block Semillon – I don’t know when the last time was that I tried a straight Australian Semillon. Must be a decade, at least. Semillion’s a native grape of France, where it’s usually blended into white Bordeaux or noble rotted to make Sauternes, the most expensive (and for good reason) dessert wine in the world. In Australia, though, Semillon is grown as a primary white varietal. If this wine’s any indication, I’ll need to work this into the rotation somewhere. This version’s a crisp, minerally white full of lemons and limes. Lots of minerals on the palate, which has a nice weight and a little honeyed sweetness. Most wines this acidic feel much lighter. Pretty floral nose, too. $14.

Hope Estates 2015 Hunter Valley Chardonnay – As I mentioned, for me, Australian Chardonnay always seemed uncomplicated and forgettable. Some winemakers seem to have taken up the challenge of improving these wines. This estate grown Chardonnay is aged in French oak with extended time on the lees to add to the mouthfeel. It has a very fruity nose -- bananas and pears, which leads to a full flavored body with a nice creaminess. The flavor yields plenty of pears and peaches, transitioning to a well-balanced oakiness. The finish is lasting, fairly crisp, and with a nice little smokiness. A nicely put together wine. Good value at $14.

Hope Estates 2014 “The Ripper” Shiraz – The first of two Shiraz bottlings in this set. Don’t be frightened by the name of this wine – “Ripper” is an Australian slang term for “Great.” Honestly, I feel like that’s a pretty solid interpretation of this particular bottle. Full of Oz-Shiraz red fruit-forwardness on the nose and palate, the Ripper pulls back into a nicely balanced middle of spice, licorice, plums, and leather. Not the fruit bomb you might expect from an Australian Shiraz, the finish on this is long and fruity, but with a solid tannic backbone. A particularly strong value at $18.

Hope Estates 2014 Basalt Block Shiraz – The “Basalt Block” is a parcel of land in the Broken Back mountain range with deep, volcanic soil, which lends an earthy characteristic to this wine not found in the Ripper. This one has a lovely nose of coffee and plums that transitions into a deeper, smokier fruit on the palate. Blackberry, graphite, and smoke entwine on a firm tannic base. The finish tickles on for quite a good length of time, with smoke and dark fruit alternating. Fans of Rhone Valley-style blends will really enjoy this wine. Again, $14.

In time for Australia Day – A double barrel from Hardy’s

In case you’re wondering what to do with next weekend, since the Super Bowl is still a week away, you could consider throwing an Australia Day party. Australia Day is often likened to the 4th of July in the U.S., and there is a connection. After we declared our independence in 1776 and kicked the Brits out for good in 1783, the British Empire was in need of a new expansion. The British First Fleet landed at Botany Bay in Australia on January 26th, 1787 to set up a penal colony and outpost. The day became an official national holiday in Australia in 1994.

With Australia Day as a backdrop, the good folks at Folsom & Associates sent along a pair of Australian wines as potential accompaniments to however and whatever you’re going to be celebrating over the next couple of weeks, and beyond.

This pair of wines is from Hardy’s, one of the older winemaking operations in Australia. They were founded in 1853 by Thomas Hardy, who is not to be confused with this guy, the author of Jude the Obscure or either of these guys:

Nope. Not winemakers.

The fifth generation of Hardys currently operates the winery, which produces wines under the Nottage Hill, William Hardy, Tintara, Stamp of Australia, and Whiskers Blake labels. (Whiskers Blake actually makes a very tasty port, if memory and my archives hold.) This mixed pair pulls from two of these labels. Here’s what we got to sample:

Hardy’s 2012 “Nottage Hill” Shiraz – You don’t even have to get this wine to your lips to know this is an Aussie Shiraz. The nose is a dead giveaway. Australian Shiraz tends to be big, fragrant, and full of big, extracted fruit. This is no different. On the bouquet, I got big, ripe plums with a little cut wood in the back of my nostrils. The flavor follows right along initially. At first sip, it’ll hit you with a whallop of big dark fruits, but therafter it settles down a bit and reveals some nice structure with good, firm tannins that linger throughout. This tannin is necessary as balance for the considerably fruit, which turns more blackberryish towards the end. At $13, this is a very drinkable wine if you’re looking for a good winter red. I had this alongside a thyme-spiked mushroom and beef ravioli soup and it was a good match. Great with dark chocolate, as well.

Hardy’s 2012 “William Hardy” Chardonnay – This bottle turned out to be a very different style of Chardonnay than I’m used to. I’m accustomed to either the bigger Chardonnays of California or the leaner styles of Burgundy. This wine tries to split the difference. I saw in the winemaking notes that it’s a combination of fruit. It’s largely juice from cool growing regions, which usually means a leaner style, but it’s blended with some warm weather grapes to round it out. The result? I found a nose of lime and melted butter. The body is fairly substantial with more citrus flavors than the peachy ones I was expecting. The flavor transitions into an oaky finish that’s slightly cut through by more lime flavor. While there was apparently some malolactic fermentation, which usually turns chardonnay creamy, I didn’t get those flavors at all – although it did add to the weight, I’m certain. All in all, it’s not a bad wine, especially if you like citrus and oak. I think it’s a little pricey at $17. I think it probably would be good with shellfish or any sort of grilled fish or chicken.

Mod Ozzfest 2013 – A New Year's Taste of Australia

Another orbit of ol’ Sol is complete, bringing us back once again to the reasonably-annual Naked Vine New Year’s Feast & Festival of Sloth!

Ground Zero for the festivities

This year has been challenging around Vine HQ, personally and professionally. The Sweet Partner in Crime and I decided we needed to get away for a couple of days to unplug. For both logistical and financial reasons, we decided to stay close to home. We rented a cabin near Natural Bridge State Park and Red River Gorge for a couple of nights and decided to take our cooking show on the road.

Last year’s Feast ‘n Sloth (interrupted slightly by an exploding car radiator during an ice storm) focused on the cuisine of NewZealand. We cast about for ideas and decided to stay in that corner of the world. Australia hadn’t been on our list of “interesting cuisine destinations” until we discovered…Mod Oz!

The lineup.

For most of its history, Australian cuisine revolved around aboriginal cooking and the meat-pie-and-Vegemite imports from Great Britain. These comfort food-ish recipes lacked something in the “zing” department. Over the last 20-25 years, the increasingly multicultural population has begun harnessing Australia’s riches of fresh fruits and vegetables as well as its panoply of proteins. Modern Australian cuisine, better known as “Mod Oz” cooking, is a mashup of these traditional recipes with a crazy train of Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, French, German, Lebanese, Vietnamese and Mediterranean cuisines. Intriguing? You bet.

One of the hallmarks of Mod Oz, aside from the lovely sounding combinations of flavors, is the relatively quick cooking time. Australians, it seems, love to eat but don’t want to spend a lot of time pent up in the kitchen. Right in our sweet spot! We found some recipes, hit the store, stocked up on a number of Australian vino selections, packed up Jessie Louise (Queen Diva of all Beagles) and headed for the Cliff Eagle Chalet.

Just getting warmed up.

We arrived mid-afternoon. We didn’t want to just show up at the cabin and start cooking, so we bopped into a nearby Subway for a salad to split as a snack. We got our keys, unloaded our groceries, split the salad, and opened our first bottle of wine – the D’Arenberg 2012 “The Broken Fishplate” Sauvignon Blanc ($16). A “fishplate” is part of a grape harvesting mechanism on a tractor, apparently. The salad – sweet onion chicken teriyaki, if you’re wondering – hit the spot, raised our blood sugar, and actually went well with the wine. (As an added environmental bonus, we ended up repurposing the salad container for all subsequent courses.) The Fishplate was grapefruity and crisp. We found this sauvignon blanc much less grassy than many its New Zealand counterparts. Very clean drinking and tasty. We saved most of the bottle for later.

Chicken & Kumara Curry

Our hunger slaked for the moment, we settled in for a bit, tested out the hot tub, watched a little TV, and eventually got around to starting work our first “official” recipe for the trip: Chicken & Kumara Curry. (Recipe links will take you over to The Man Who Cooks for further instructions.) “Kumara” is the Down Under term for “sweet potato.” We paired this with the Frisk 2012 “Prickly Riesling” ($10). The “prickly” refers to a slight effervescence in the wine – very similar to a Moscato d’Asti. The flavor is also reminiscent of an Italian Moscato, although not quite as sweet. Plenty of peach, tropical fruit, and melon flavors packed therein. The little bubbliness cleaned up the sweetness, creating a friendly quaff that was also a very nice pairing with our fabulous curry.

[Subway container repurposing: prep bowl for sweet potato. We also provided a beagle treat with each course. This time: sautéed chicken scraps.]

Pleasantly full, we slipped quickly into full flop mode for the rest of the evening. Come the morn, we took it easy for our breakfast course. We started our day about as simply as we could: Nutella on toast with a banana on the side. We wanted to ease into the goodies to come…because, boy howdy, was there some good stuff coming down the pike.

What's not better with Nutella?

The good stuff started with brunch, my favorite meal of the day. However, brunch usually doesn’t come in the form of King Prawn Salad with Peas, Asparagus, and Sweet Almond Dressing. One simply cannot do a set of Australian meals without throwing some shrimp on the barbie and these critters were grilled to perfection. We paired this loveliness with Wishing Tree 2009 Unoaked Chardonnay ($11), a creamy concoction packed with green apples and a little vanilla. On its own, pleasant enough, but when the creaminess of the wine met the richness of the prawn meat, what emerged was a little slice of heaven. We picked and slurped and made yummy noises for a good long while.

[Subway container repurposing: transport tray to and from the grill. Beagle treat: a few steamed prawn shells.]

Mmm...prawns!

After watching some basketball, the out of doors came calling. The weather was chilly but pleasant. We started the marination of a future course, bundled up, and headed to the Rock Bridge Trail in Red River Gorge – one of the loveliest short hikes in the United States. The beagle was in fine fettle – setting a blazing pace, attempting to clear the woods of rabbits, and working on clearing brush with her frantically wagging tail.

Beagle in gear!

After a record-breaking turn of the circuit, we returned to the Cliff Eagle for a float in the hot tub and the preparation of our next creation, Mussels in White Wine & Garlic Sauce with Pepperoni and Yellow Pepper.

Swimming in the broth is permitted.

What started off as a pretty standard steamed mussel preparation turned quickly into a headfirst dive into the pile of shells. Greedily, we pulled the mussels from the shells and let them float in this rich, delicious broth so that we could simply spoon it all up, bouillabaisse style. We had this with the rest of the bottle of Broken Fishplate. While the spice from the pepperoni made a bit of a funky pairing initially, the meshing improved as the course went on. Delicious.

[Subway container repurposing: shell graveyard. Beagle treat: a few pepperoni slices.]

More relaxation time ensued. Time passed. The sun dropped below the horizon. As night came on, we removed the final course from the fridge to allow our marinating meat to come to room temperature. As it warmed, we did a side-by-side tasting of two bottles of Aussie Shiraz: Mitolo 2010 “Jester” McLaren Vale Shiraz ($14) and Elderton 2008 Barossa Shiraz ($20). I can’t recall ever doing an Australian Shiraz regional comparison. We tried them with a couple of cheeses – an aged Gouda and a Parmesan-esque hard Italian cheese.

As a rule, Barossa Shiraz tends to be bigger, fruitier, and higher in alcohol, whereas McLaren Vale Shiraz tends to be somewhat more subtle in its brawny nature. These two bottles illustrated that very rule quite nicely. The Jester’s main flavors were cherry, bittersweet chocolate, and slate. It was full flavored without being overly heavy. It brought out some nice flavors in a rindy, Parmesan type cheese. The Elderton was darker. There was more of a rich plum flavor with thicker, heavier body and tannin. It was a better match for the aged Gouda we brought along.

Meat! Meat! Meat!

I was very curious how the wines would go with our “main” course, Lamb Kabobs with Mike’s Garligorge Sauce.  Our meal contained almost two full heads of garlic between the marinade, the garligorge, and the side salad we made from the leftover rocket, caramelized onions, shredded Italian cheese and sweet almond dressing. We discovered that the Jester may be one of the best wines to accompany garlic The Jester cut through the garlic and went well with everything, but…deer lawrd…the Elderton and the lamb were nothing short of utterly awesome, and I nearly wet myself after smearing the garligorge on the lamb. MOAR SHIRAZ!

[Subway container repurposing: Grill transport. Beagle treat: trimmed lamb fat.]

With full bellies, we settled in to watch what remained of a couple of bowl games and eventually New Year’s Eve festivities (but no bone movies). As the clock neared midnight, we broke out our last bottle, the Paringa 2008 Sparkling Shiraz ($13), to toast in 2013. The countdown began and I worked on the bottle. The ball dropped just as I worked the cork out.

Pfft.

The cork was flawed. There was no carbonation whatsoever, rendering the wine a sweet, vinegary mess. Oh, well – we’d more or less had our fill by that point anyway. We improved, filling our flutes with what was left of the Elderton, toasting in the new year with big ass red wine and a Lindt truffle. A rainstorm started outside and we crashed not long after, listening to the drum solo on the roof.

Bacon and beans. How can you go wrong?

New Year’s Day dawned. We were a bit bleary both from wine and from the random staccato the rain devolved into as the night went on. We had one more meal at the cabin before departing. An Australian “Fry-Up” – which is very much along the lines of your usual bacon and eggs – except instead of a side of potatoes or grits, the Aussies start their day with a side of baked beans. (“Our beans come from a can, as God intended” one Australian cooking website helpfully instructed.)

[Subway container repurposing: Bowl for dog food. Beagle treat: BACON.]

Replenished, relaxed, and ready, we bid adieu to the Cliff Eagle and said hello to 2013, with a newfound curiosity for Australian wines in our hearts and palates. We already have something interesting planned for next year’s jaunt, so watch this space around this time in 2014. It’s gonna be a doozy.

Happy New Year, everyone! 

Wine & Dinner of the Month Club – July 2011

It’s July and that means parades, flags, fireworks and RIBS! This year Christine and I were visiting her sister Vida and brother-in-law (and my doppelganger) Rob and their two boys Orion and Jonas. They live on Bainbridge Island near Seattle, Washington, so we got to spend time with them and experience some of the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest. Since we were going out there, we decided to take the Wine and Dinner Club on the road. With luck and plenty of bubble wrap in the luggage, the wine made it in fine shape, supplemented by some Washington state wines that Rob picked up for the occasion. Enjoy.

Menu

• Barbecued Baby Back Ribs
• Sweet and Sour Slaw
• Coconut Grilled Corn on the Cob
• Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Wine (We had a GOOD TIME!!)

• 2008 Owen Roe Ex Umbris Columbia Valley Syrah
• 2007 Dominio IV Columbia Gorge Syrah/Tempranillo
• 2008 Sagelands Columbia Valley Red Wine
• 2004 D’Arenberg The Love Grass McLaren Vale Shiraz (Naked Vine Recommendation)

We started with some cheeses and cured meats as an appetizer. The cheeses were a manchego and a herbed goat cheese, and the meats were a spicy cured Italian salami and some thin prosciutto. They were served with a sourdough baguette and the first of the Washington state wines, the Ex Umbris. We had asked Rob to pick up another bottle of The Love Grass for the meal, but his local wine shop did not have it in stock and would have had to order it in special. When asked about an Australian wine, the person at the shop said, “Well, that’s one way you could go.” According to Rob, he then went on to espouse the superior quality of Washington state wines and pelted Rob with granola until Rob relented and bought the local fare. (That last part may have been a little exaggerated.) As I recall, and since there were four bottles of wine I don’t recall much, nobody was really bowled over by the Ex Umbris. It had a little spice to it, but not enough to stand up to the spicy salami. I thought it went well with the manchego and would probably be good with a simple piece of grilled meat. Thus, we decided it was a good M&M wine (Meat & Manchego).

After the appetizer we had the main meal which included the slaw, corn and ribs that had been cooking low and slow in the oven at 225 degrees Fahrenheit for about five hours. We did two racks. One I dry rubbed with Southside Market & Barbecue Premium Original BBQ Seasoning from the Southside Market in Houston, Texas and the other with Colonel’s Smoky Rub from Colonel De Gourmet Herbs and Spices at Findlay Market in Cincinnati, Ohio. To cook the ribs you just wrap them in aluminum foil, sealing it tightly, and put them on a baking sheet to catch leaking juices. You don’t even have to watch them and they come out supper moist and tasty. I always put a little barbecue sauce on them and put them under the broiler for a while to give them a nice glaze. Oh, and did I mention Rob is the source for my rib recipe? The other key is to wear an orange shirt!

The ribs were delicious and between the four of us we finished both racks. The slaw was tangy and a little sweet and was a cool contrast to the spiciness that the rubs imparted to the ribs. Of the two, the Southside rub was spicier with more pepper in the mix, while the Colonel’s Smoky Rub was just that, smoky. The coconut basted corn was sweet and was a great accompaniment to the meal as well. By this time we were well into the Dominio wine. It was good, but again, nothing really outstanding. We liked saying that the Syrah was tempered by the Tempranillo, but that was probably just the second bottle of wine talking. Before we finished the meal, we broke open The Love Grass. We thought this one was a lot different than the others and much better with more flavor and good tannic structure (take that granola boy). Or so I recall. Hey, give me a break - this was the third bottle of the night!

After the ribs came out of the oven and while we were eating, I put the pie in to bake. We took a long break after the dinner waiting for the pie to finish cooking and then let it cool while we cleaned up the kitchen. The pie was delicious with the sweetness of the strawberries offsetting the tartness of the very rhubarb, and the filling could not have been more local with both the strawberries and the rhubarb from Vida and Rob’s garden behind their house.

We finished The Love Grass and opened the Sagelands, which was good, but not too complex. It was a nice sipping wine to finish up the evening. Thank you to Vida and Rob for a great July 4^th getaway!

Starting up the Summer

I had the good fortune last week to co-lead a tasting with my pal Danny Gold from Party Source. The theme of the tasting changed quite a bit during our planning stages. We thought about doing wines from every continent or just sticking to cabernet blends from all over – but neither of those really rang true.

We each ended up picking three wines that were relatively inexpensive and we “just liked.” To our sold-out crowd, this seemed to work just fine. Only after everything was over and done did I realize that we’d unknowingly cobbled together a pretty decent slate of beginning-of-summer bottles: two easy drinking and interesting whites, a couple of light and flexible reds, and a couple of bigger red wines suitable for grilling. So, Since Memorial Day and the “official start of summer” are upon us, without further ado:

Cucao 2009 Pedro Ximenez – This light white caught my eye because of the grape. “Pedro Ximenez” (or “PX”) is the name of a Spanish grape used largely in the production of Sherry. (If you recall, I haven’t had the greatest experiences with that particular tipple.) Certain grapes do interesting things when planted outside their native home. I’m a huge fan of Malbec, which was largely a minor French blending grape until it was planted in Argentina. I thought I’d take a chance and see what the soils of Chile might have contributed here.

Turns out that the Chilean terroir is very kind to PX. The nose is quite lovely, full of flowers and spice. It’s light bodied and quite acidic like a citrusy pinot grigio, but with an interesting melony flavor and a slight “briny” taste that echoed the not-unpleasant parts of Sherry. The finish is light and crisp. This would be a perfect summer porch day wine and the high acid content makes it a match with many summer cuisines – fish or shellfish, chicken, salads, light pastas. At around nine bucks, it’s a pretty complex, intriguing wine. Certainly worth a try. Vote for Pedro!

Terra di Briganti 2009 Sannio Falanghina – Danny’s selection was another “unfamiliar” grape – this time from Italy. I admitted being somewhat skeptical. My first experience with Falanghina was the wine sent by Savannah Samson a few years ago. It wasn’t, shall we say, the tastiest of whites. Danny knows his stuff, though. This one won me over. Another light bodied white, although with a somewhat creamier feel. The flavor brought more tropical fruits – peaches and pineapples – to the table. The finish was soft and pleasant with a nice little acidic zing. Goat cheeses would go nicely, as would richer fishes like trout or salmon. Lobster would be divine here. I also found it very drinkable on its own. If you’re a fan of Italian whites, give this a run at around $15.

Domaine Dupeuble 2009 Beaujolais – I make no secret of my love of Beaujolais in the summer. I ask you, what’s more perfect for a warm weather bottle than a light, easy-drinking red wines that pair with almost anything foodwise and taste best with a slight chill? Sign me up! The 2009 vintage in Beaujolais was, by all accounts, a year for the ages. Some of the best Beaujolais are being compared favorably to higher end Burgundy. The 2009’s are now readily available and you should snap them up if you’re into this sort of thing.

Off the bat, lovely waves of rich cherry flavor and a bit of smokiness greet you here. Most straight Beaujolais are nowhere near this “full” tasting. Great fruit, nice acid, and just an overall sense of well-balanced yumminess follows. There’s a lot to pull apart in this wine, but don’t work too hard on it. I think it’s best enjoyed as a whole, non-thinking “experience.”

French wine can be confusing, as I’ve mentioned on numerous occasions. One thing you can do is to check the bottle of a French (or Italian or anywhere, really) wine that you liked and check the name of the importer. This particular Beaujolais is a Kermit Lynch selection. I’ve had very good luck with almost anything that has his name on it. Around $13.

Tenuta delle Terre Nere 2009 Etna Rosso – Danny was stoked about pouring this. The Rosso is from vineyards on the side of Mount Etna in Sicily which were left fallow for decades. Winemaker Mark DeGrazia opened these vineyards and made this red from the indigenous Nerello grape. The grapes are grown at the highest elevation in Europe for growing red grapes in soil that’s basically volcanic ash. The method of production is almost identical to that used in Burgundy. The result is a light-bodied, fragrant, exceptionally tasty wine that strongly echoes the flavors of French pinot noir. It’s very well balanced, has a light earthiness to the flavor that I really enjoyed, along with layers of raspberry and minerals. I’d nestle it up nicely next to light red-sauced pastas, grilled fish, or something like a chicken/veal picatta. $15-18.

Charles Smith “The Velvet Devil” 2009 Washington State Merlot – I like throwing Charles Smith’s wines in tastings when I can, since they’re just fun wines. Smith, self-taught winemaker and former manager of Scandinavian death metal bands, has a number of wines in his “Modernist Project” set of offerings. Modernist Project wines (easily locatable in your store by the black and white labels and interesting names) are designed to be wines you can crack, pour, and drink – but that aren’t one-note, unbalanced wines. I think that this merlot is absolutely killer. Blackberry, cinnamon, dark chocolate – all blended and balanced. For a wine this sumptuous, it’s very easy to drink. Grill some meat. Pour this wine. Eat. Drink. You’ll be happy. You’ll also be happy if you want something with a chocolate-based dessert later on and you have a bottle of this on hand. And at around $10, you can afford a couple of bottles.

Thorn-Clarke 2009 “Shotfire” Shiraz – Danny wanted to finish up with a bang, so he dug into the Australian aisle and pulled out this monster of a red. The Shotfire is a jammy, high-alcohol shiraz. It checks in at around 16% alcohol, so make sure you give it a few minutes to catch its breath after you open it before you dip your nose in. You’re hit with big, plummy shiraz flavor backed with a white peppery finish. While you get some enormous flavors, I didn’t find them overwhelming. You just have to know what you’re in for and plan accordingly. If you’ve got yourself a slab of barbecue ribs or almost anything else with a rub or a sauce that you want outside, this is your wine. Like many Aussie Shiraz, it’s also a winner with chocolate, especially dark chocolate. Right around $15.

Drink up and enjoy!

 

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Juice Box Wines

I’ve written a couple of times before about box wines. Many of them are excellent values for everyday drinking. The only drawback to them is that they tend to be…well…boxy. The usual size of these is three liters, which is the equivalent of four bottles. The packaging is ingenious, since it’s basically airtight and wines will last a long time, especially while refrigerated.

One drawback, however -- while that size is handy to have around the house, it’s not particularly portable. Smaller versions have been popping up in some stores. J-Mac (not to be confused with J-Woww), one of the Vine’s regular readers, suggested: “It's summer, buy a couple of those "juice boxes," and have a picnic…” Not a bad idea!

The smaller versions come most frequently in one-liter containers, so there's an extra glass or so per carton compared to a regular bottle. You also can find them in 500 ml or 250 ml sizes, so they do start to approach the size of a Capri Sun. If you've got kids and you buy some of these, make sure you check closely when packing lunch. I’m not sure how well pinot grigio pairs with 4^th grade civics.

These packages are also considerably lighter than glass bottles, so they make much more sense when you’re heading out to the local park, woods, levee, or anywhere else you may want to spread a blanket and enjoy some good company. In Europe, winemakers have been putting out this kind of smaller packaging for years, but it’s yet to catch on in the U.S. (although I think that will probably change in the future).

I headed to the local beverage superstore and picked out a few of these to sample. Here’s what I came home with:

Three Thieves "Bandit" 2008 California Pinot Grigio -- not half bad. Pleasantly peachy nose. Fairly substantial for a pinot grigio. Some weight to the palate with apple and peach flavors. A little bit of residual sugar, clearly. The finish is fruity and slightly sweet. It's not as acidic or tart as many pinot grigios, but I don't think that's the idea here. The purpose is clearly to create a wine that is food-friendly and inoffensive. Success recorded. For $5-8 a liter, an excellent value, especially when you're comparing it to other bottles of pinot grigio in the $4-6 range. It blows those away.

Vendange "Tetra Pak" (NV) California Chardonnay -- There's a saying I've heard somewhere in my travels: "A little bit of sugar covers a whole lot of flaws." This Vendange is a lovely illustration of just that. Since it's inexpensive California chardonnay, I expected either a load of oak or cream, with some fruit. I was one for three. Very little, if any, oak. No butter. Some pear flavors, but the nose is odd, and there's a residual sweetness that's probably there to cover the fact that, well, not a lot of care went into the making of this wine. It's leftover juice, fermented, sweetened a bit, and packed up to sell at about six bucks a liter. After a glass, my stomach hurt a bit. Give it a pass unless you're making spritzers.

French Rabbit 2004 Vin de Pays d'Oc Pinot Noir -- I'll admit I was looking forward to a portable pinot. I didn't have high expectations, of course. I just hoped for a light, food-friendly red that I'd be able to put a little bit of a chill on and slug on. Cracked it, poured it...and almost spit my mouthful across the monitor. This was an absolutely horrible wine. The whole point of having one of these "tetra paks" is that a wine is supposed to stay fresh. If this was "fresh" wine, I don't know who'd like it. Sour, acidic, and horrifically unpleasant. My immediate thought was to take your $8-9 and buy yourself a sixer of Smithwick's or something. You'll be better off. Bleah.

Something nagged at me, though. The Vendange and the French Rabbit seemed so “off” that I couldn’t believe a winery would actually send those out into the world. I was at my local Kroger and decided to pop into their wine store. They had the Vendange, but not the French Rabbit. Instead, I picked up the Alice White (NV) South Eastern Australian Shiraz.

The Alice White was, for all intents and purposes, the same as the Alice White that you’d get in a bottle. Straightforward, fruity, drinkable, and non-thinkable. Decent enough if no one’s looking. But my second go-round with the Vendange was a different experience. There was less sweetness and none of the weird nose. It still wasn’t my favorite chardonnay – even at that price point – but it was much more palatable.

So, what happened? My theory – the inexpensive wines are the ones handled with the least care. At some point along the line, these containers were probably left to sit in a hot truck or on a hot palette somewhere – and the wine began to turn to vinegar. In the French Rabbit’s case, that process was rather far along, I think.

I won’t name names, but I’ve had “vinegarized” box wine on a couple of other occasions from this same beverage superstore. I would be willing to give the French Rabbit another try, but I haven’t been able to locate it anywhere else around here. I’ll update this entry when I get the chance to give it another go.

Just the same, like many of the inexpensive wines out there, as long as you don’t need to think too much about what you’re drinking, you can probably find something at least decently quaffable to pack along in a cooler or a basket. No breakage, no worries, and easy cleanup. Any of you have experience with these you’d like to share?

A Day In The Life

I was talking to the Sweet Partner in Crime over dinner this evening (bulgogi-style chicken, fish sauce-soaked cucumbers, kimchi, and a tasty Brancott Sauvignon Blanc if you're curious) and I was feeling a little down. I got nominated for the international Wine Blog Awards, and I wasn't named one of the five finalists. Honestly, I was pretty disappointed, especially after I looked at the finalists and figured I could write circles around a couple of them. I was gritting my teeth a little that people didn't recognize.

When I started this little wine blogging adventure of mine, I had no idea where it would lead. Sure, I had "Julie & Julia" fantasies that I've mentioned before -- that someone from the Food Network would stumble across the Naked Vine one day, be so impressed that they'd ask me to take my "sommelier for the common man" act on the road, and people would know my bald pate all over the place.

I think I do what I do pretty damned well. But every single writer I've ever known who's published publicly does as well. While there may be nothing new under the sun, every writer thinks that he or she has a unique take, even if it's a topic that's been covered a million times before. It's like the old guitar joke:

Q. How many lead guitarists does it take to screw in a light bulb?

A. Four. One to screw in the bulb, and three to say, "I could do it better."

Anyway, there are now thousands of wine blogs on the Internets, and there are a fair number of good writers. Complicating matters, I'm a bit of a throwback. I'm not much on social media. Hell, I have an actual job, people...I'm at a loss as to how people have time to work, tweet 200 times a day, and harvest their Farmville crops. I'm more interested in getting in print than being a Twitter trending topic. I also lack the energy to play the grip and greet game, so I don't know too many of the "people who know people."

Leave it to the SPinC to give me some perspective. She looked me right in the face during the midst of my little rant and asked me, "Do you still enjoy doing this?" In a typical display of my brilliant repartee, I looked right back at her and said, "Huh?"

"Really, why are you doing this? Are you having fun, or is this just something that you're doing to try to get people to give your site hits?"

I've learned one thing over the last eight-plus years. When the lady's right, she's right.

Every now and again, it's really is a good thing to count your blessings. Ever since my conversation with Scott so many years ago, this little endeavor of mine has allowed me to meet some pretty damned cool people, exposed me to a body of knowledge and science that I didn't fully understand, got me the occasional wine sample, and is something I take pride in.

So yeah, I do have fun, especially when I get on opportunity like last weekend. D.E.P's Fine Wine and Spirits let me have the run of their tasting table for their weekend tastings. I decided to do a live version of my last column.

I had a great time talking with people about the wines and why I found them interesting. I used to worry that I sounded like a complete clod, and while I still may, at least I'm a semi-authoritative clod, and most people walked away from the table with a bottle or two in their hands and a smile on their face, so I must have been doing something right. Since I have that little victory under my belt, I give you, straight from the soundboard, my picks:

I poured a pinot grigio next to a pinot gris to illustrate the difference. I had the Kris 2008 Pinot Grigio from Italy ($13) and the King Estates 2008 Pinot Gris from Oregon. The Kris was light, crisp, and full of citrus. A great lawnmower wine. The King Estates was fuller, had some softer fruit and had a honey-ish sweetness. I found it an instructive contrast between the two styles of the same grape.

I'd picked out a pinot noir to go between the two contrasts, but K2 let me know that there wasn't enough of the one I'd picked, so he substituted the Underwood Cellars 2008 Pinot Noir instead. This was a super-light pinot. Some nice cherry flavors out of such a light body. Not as much smoke and depth as I'd usually like. I prefer my pinots a little bit heavier, but it was certainly drinkable. At $10, a pretty decent value.

The last two wines I did was the syrah/shiraz comparison. I had the Gordon Brothers 2005 Syrah ($17) set up next to the Torbreck "The Woodcutter" 2006 Shiraz. ($19) The Gordon Brothers is from Columbia Valley in Washington State. It took a little while to open up, but once it did...yum. A somewhat restrained syrah, there were layers of dark fruit, coffee, and chocolate. As I told more than one person, "Pour a glass of this and get some dark chocolate, have some of both, and just lay back and let it happen..." The Torbreck was a typical ballsy Aussie shiraz. Lots of fruit with enough backbone to keep it from being a mess. Lots of in your face flavors that pair well with anything on a grill.

Like most writers, I fall into the trap of taking myself too seriously -- but yes, this is still fun, especially because of all of you out there -- both those who I've met and those I haven't. Thanks to all of you who came by the tasting to visit, that regularly read me or who have stumbled over here for the first time. From the bottom of my heart, I appreciate you letting me share this little experiment with you. You guys make my life better. Thank you.

Golden Kaan

Monica from Balzac, who was goodly enough to let me try the Espiritu de Chile selections back in January, asked me to give my impressions of Golden Kaan wines, a new series of wines from the Western Cape of South Africa near Cape Town.

Golden Kaan 2007 Chenin Blanc -- South African chenin blanc is an entirely different animal than the light, crisp chenin that quality winemakers are doing in California, or the fruit-laden minerality of the Loire whites from France. South African chenins tend to be a little heavier, and the Kaan certainly is an excellent representation of this varietal. The nose is quite full of caramel and vanilla. The body is as full as I've tasted in a chenin, and contains a pleasantly complex mix of citrus, vanilla, and toasty oak. The finish is a nice, lasting balance of oak and melon.

The recommended pairing was a warm green bean salad (which ended up helping me discover a great way to put fresh, uncooked onions in a dish without having stank-breath after!) and I added a grilled grouper recipe from the Giuliano Hazan cookbook I mentioned once before. The pairing was spot-on. The bean salad had a lemon-based dressing which pointed up some citrus notes in the wine. The smokiness of the wine's flavors went very well with the grilled fish.

Golden Kaan 2006 Pinotage & Golden Kaan 2007 Shiraz -- The SPinC and I tried these two wines side by side, since the recommended food pairing for both was this tasty looking "lamb soasities" recipe. (In case you're wondering what in tarnation that is, it's lamb shoulder cut into chunks and marinated in a mixture of onion, lemon juice, garlic, and various curry-themed spices; skewered with green pepper, shallots, and dried apricots; and cooked over hot coals. Recipe here. Yum!)

We tasted the wines by themselves initially. We discovered that using the aerator that we brought back from California was a huge help for these wines. Both of them definitely needed some time to breathe, since they were both a) relatively young and b) varietals that can always stand a little bit of air to wake up the flavors.

Pinotage, for many people, is a "love it or hate it" varietal. Pinotage is a crossbreed of Cinsault and Pinot Noir, and is the wine South Africa is best known for. This hybrid produces a wine that's slightly heavier than many Pinot Noirs, with some very strong flavors. These wines are often very smoky and rich, and they can have any number of flavors that don't appear in many wines. Done well, these wines stand up nicely to grilled and smoked game and pungent spices.

This version, while possessing some of the characteristics you'd expect in Pinotage, is a reasonably approachable wine. The nose is full of tart cherries and chocolate with a strong smoky flavor on the palate. There's a slightly bitter flavor on the finish, almost like coffee, and it's dry. The shiraz is a light styled wine. The nose is of fresh cut wood and cherries -- more sweet cherry than the tartness of the Pinotage. There's a tobacco flavor as well, but the cherries dominate the palate from front to end.

With the food, I thought that the Pinotage was much more interesting. I thought it stood up to the spices in the marinade and the sauce, and the flavors in the wine itself stood out. The SPinC was of a different mind. She enjoyed the shiraz more, since there were already so many varied flavors in the food -- she felt that the shiraz allowed the food to take center stage and be a solid complementary taste. She said, "If it were January, I'd probably like the Pinotage more."

I think the Pinotage is an excellent "starter" if you're not too familiar with the varietal and you want to get a sense of it. The shiraz was OK -- but I think there are some better ones out there in the same price point.

All three wines retail for around $10 and are broadly available.

P.S. Vine reader Steve G pointed out my patently obvious missed opportunity for a Star Trek reference with the name of this wine. But after about a dozen "KAAAAAAAAAN!" exclamations with the SPinC looking at me sideways, I decided to let it slide. But please, feel free to unleash your inner Shatner after killing a bottle of one of these.

Tropic of Capricorn-ucopia

The Scene: A novice wine drinker scurries nervously down the aisle of a local wine store. He studiously avoids eye contact with the "overly helpful" store employees who hover like Eddie Bauer associates around a 2-for-$25 rack of mock turtlenecks. All he wants is a bottle of wine that will simply taste good to his uneducated palate. Ducking left out of the chardonnay aisle, he finds himself staring at an array of multicolored bottles of red wine from Australia. He exhales, looks left and right, snags a bottle of Rosemount Shiraz, tucks it under his arm like John Riggins, and heads straight for the checkout...

Yes, yes -- that was me back in the day. I didn't have much of a palate. My knowledge of pairings didn't extend much past "red with beef, white with chicken." Swirling wine was something snooty people did. I just wanted something where I'd like the taste and I could fill my glass again and again without thinking.

The Australian aisle was my saving grace. The Ozzies produced an ocean of cheap "plonk" (still one of my favorite words in WineSpeak...) in the mid-to-late 90's, but they established themselves as go-to cheap, decent "wine for the people." I drank plenty of that stuff. My palate became more adventurous as I started going to wine tastings and learning more about pairing food with wine, and I largely drifted away from Aussie offerings. I was introduced to California Syrah and I became acquainted with the offerings from the Syrah-heavy wines from Rhone valley in France, so the cheap, down-under versions tasted like fruity messes. New Zealand also burst onto the scene with their crazy sauvignon blancs and pinot noirs, so Australia got eclipsed in my wine rack for awhile.

I'm coming back around on Australian wine. The Barossa Valley shirazes have become more and more interesting over the last several years, as I wrote about last January. They've also become more and more expensive. The latest trend I've seen, however, is Australian winemakers following in the footsteps of the Italians.

About a decade ago, Italy started cranking out these wines they called "Super Tuscans." These were sangiovese-based wines blended with non-native grapes like cabernet sauvignon and merlot. The result was powerful, fruity and complex wines that the Parkerites snapped up by the case. (I like Super Tuscans, but I think many of them are terribly overpriced and far too fruity to pair with a lot of Italian cuisine, but that's just me...) The Australians started doing the same sort of blending on a large scale with Shiraz over the last few years. The result has been an increase in relatively inexpensive, food friendly, complex wines.

On the heels of my column about domestic white blends, I thought I'd have a look at some of these reds from where the liquid in the blending tank spins the other way:

First Drop 2006 "First Love" Red Wine -- Since I'm writing this column on Valentine's Day, this wine seems like a fitting place to start. The First Drop is a blend of Shiraz, Grenache, and Barbera. (65/25/10) The nose is interesting. The Shiraz comes through on the nose with a big whiff of ripe blackberries, but there's an undertone of earth there. The flavor is, as you'd expect, big and fruity -- but tempered and given a bit of depth by the Barbera. The finish is a little smoky and still quite fruity, with some solid tannins. I really enjoyed this wine as a kick back bottle at the end of the evening, but you could certainly have this with any number of foods. It bills itself as a "Southern French inspired wine with Italian stylings." I have no idea what that means. It's good. Try it. $10

Turkey Flat 2005 "The Turk" -- Here's an interesting blend: Shiraz, Grenache, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Mourvedre. (50/28/16/6). Turkey Flat does a lot of wines in the $25-60 range, so this one's their "experimental" second label wine. A successful experiment, at that. The Turk (the nickname of the winery itself) starts you with a deep nose of dark fruit and licorice. It's fruity on the initial taste, but broadens into a chocolatety middle. The finish is slightly dry and very chocolatey. Not surprisingly, a great wine to actually have with chocolate. It's no slouch with food, either. We had this with a pork tenderloin roasted with sliced fennel bulbs. The aromatics in the fennel nicely complement the fruitiness in the wine. $12-15.

Water Wheel 2006 "Memsie" Red Blend-- Water Wheel wines is in the Bendigo region, which is one I haven't explored very much. "Memsie" is the name of the estate where the grapes are grown, and that moniker is also on their red and white blends. Their red is a Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon/Malbec/Petit Verdot blend. (70/16/6/6) Not surprisingly, this was the fruitiest of the three wines I tried here. This wine has a classic fruity Shiraz nose of plums and berries tempered by the smoky scent of the malbec. Probably the most complex smelling wine of the bunch. Jammy initially at first taste, the wine mellows quickly and ends up tasting like a fruity cab. Some licorice and spice float around in the body as well. The finish is quite long with soft tannins. Like the others, a very pleasant wine by itself because of the out of the ordinary nose, but I wouldn't hesitate to recommended it with burgers or any kind of red meat, really. $11-13.


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Espiritu de Chile

Every once in a blue moon, I get a request to sample wines that are just making their way to the market -- like last year when I sampled the Monsoon Valley wines from Thailand. I was recently asked to give some new Chilean wines the once-over. I received four bottles and recipes to go alongside each.

I've always enjoyed Chilean wines. I think they're some of the best values out there. So I really looked forward to sampling these -- all of which retail for around $11.

Gewurztraminer (2007) -- I'd never had a Chilean gewurz, and at first taste I was a little surprised. It's lighter in body than many of the others we've tried. It's on the drier side, although it's not bone-dry like an Alsace gewurz. It has a slightly floral nose, a flavor of tart green apples, and a soft finish. It's a little bit peppery, but less spicy than many. By itself, honestly, it wasn't my favorite. The recommended food pairing with this wine was a green curry chicken salad. That's where this wine shone. I always add more curry paste than is called for, so this was a spicy dish with some bitter greens alongside. The flavors of this wine cut through both easily. The apple flavor became more pronounced, the peppery notes broadened, and we really enjoyed the complements. I'd put this wine easily with any kind of spicy Asian or Indian cuisine and have a very, very nice match.

Sauvignon Blanc (2007) -- Chile is well-known for sauvignon blanc, and I've praised those wines for their food-friendliness, consistency, and general all-around tastiness. This straw-colored sauvignon has a flavor as light as its color. The nose of slightly floral lemon is barely noticeable at first. If you'd blindfolded me, I could easily have mistaken this for pinot grigio. The body is light, bordering on a little bit watery. The finish is soft and only slightly acidic. The recommended food pairing was an exceptional recipe in and of itself: a simple roasted fish stew. The flavors were wonderful and the citrusy notes in the wine became much more pronounced and interesting. That said, there are less-expensive Chilean sauvignons that I'd probably choose ahead of this one if it weren't going to be paired with something.

Carmenere (2007) -- Carmenere is a first cousin of merlot. It has a slightly fumey, herbaceous nose. This fragrance yields to a medium bodied red with lots of smoky flavors, along with some blackberry. There was also an earthy undertone like a Cotes-du-Rhone with a relatively tannic finish. I was somewhat surprised by the tannins here, since I don't get those in a straight merlot. On its own, it struck me as fairly straightforward, but when set next to the recommended pairing -- which was a grilled marinated sirloin, sliced thin; topped with sautéed mushrooms with lemon juice and parsley; and grilled green onions, this wine was downright delicious. After a bite of the steak, the tannin cut through the steak's fat, bringing out a much more "merlot-ish" flavor. The onions pointed up the earthy flavors, and the mushrooms with it just plain tasted good.

Shiraz/Cabernet (2006) -- Most shiraz/cab blends that I've tried lean heavily towards the "Shiraz" side of things -- the fruit dominates with hopefully enough tannin to make the wine interesting. At a 75/25 split, I expected the same here. However, given a little time to open up, this wine was a completely different story. The nose wasn't all that fruity -- instead leaning towards vanilla and smoke. It smelled a little like roasted meat, honestly. On its own, medium-bodied with more of that vanilla/smoke blend. The finish was tannic. Decent enough. The suggested pairing was a strip steak with chimichurri sauce and criolla salsa. Four for four on food pairings. The smoky flavor of the wine meshed nicely with the meat -- and the sauces made a nice complement. I'd like to try this recipe again in the summer, since all of those flavors would be really nice when it's hot.

So, bottom line, I'd recommend all of these except the sauvignon blanc -- and I only downcheck the sauvignon because of the price point. At $7-8, it would have been perfectly acceptable. They're all definitely wines with a taste for food -- especially recipes similar to these. I also want to pass along a compliment to whomever created these recipes -- they were very easy to put together and were absolutely scrumptious. (Links to the recipes are here and here.)

Many thanks also to Monica and the folks at Balzac for giving me the chance to check these out.



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Cleaning Out My Closet

I didn’t want to leave you hanging all thirsty for some new bottles to try. As you can see from the site index, a fair amount of wine gets sampled around here. Not all of it makes it into the blog. Usually it’s for topical reasons – the wine just doesn’t fit what I’m writing about at the time, but it’s interesting enough for me to keep in reserve. I take my notes and stash them for a rainy day. Well, the clouds have come.

In no particular order, a few wines that were plenty good enough to make the Vine’s cutting, but just never wound up in a column:

Hogue 2005 Chenin Blanc -- Hogue is one of my favorite Vine-level producers. I've been extremely pleased with just about everything that I've tried from them. The Chenin Blanc certainly didn't disappoint. Within each of their varietals, I find the Hogue wines to be much richer than many of their counterparts. Not necessarily more complex, but more full-bodied and, for my money, more "elegant." The chenin has a nose of melon and green apples. I expected this to be a lighter-styled wine, but the body was rich without being cloying. A nice fruity, melony taste with a texture that reminded me a lot of a viognier. The finish is more lingering than crisp. I had this with cod loin with vegetables and herbs cooked in foil packets, and it was wonderful. $8-10.

96 Points 2005 Shiraz/Viognier -- One of the best marketing ideas I've seen – why worry about what Parker’s going to give your wine when you can slap a score right on the label? It's certainly an interesting wine. Australian shirazes are always fragrant, and the viognier in this blend amplifies that, giving this a very strong nose of strawberries, coffee, and mint. Lush on the tongue, and not as fruity as I would have expected. Finish starts out with a light tannin that strengthens for a long time into a lingering coffee flavor. Around $10.

Laurel Glen 2005 "Reds" -- Marketed as "a wine for the people" -- this red blend from Lodi, California is a blend of four grapes -- Zinfandel, Carignane, Petit Sirah, and Syrah. The result is a big ol' smooth red wine. The nose is cherries and blackberries. As you would expect with those particular grapes, this is a big-tasting wine, but the fruit-bomb tendency of the zinfandel is tempered by the syrah and petit sirah -- leaving a taste of smooth tart cherries. The finish slides easily into a slightly dry, slightly fruity end which is quite nice. This wine was born to go with grilled or roasted red meat. Rare roast beef and new potatoes would be scrumptious here. At $8-10, you can spend the extra money on meat from the butcher's case.

Woodsman's White 2005 Cserszegi Füszeres – I simply didn’t know where to put this wine when I first tried it. The grape is pronounced chair-seggy fooser-raish. A clone of a gewürztraminer grown in Hungary. reminiscent of Alsace gewürztraminer. It starts you out with a strong sweet apple nose. Body is initially very dry. After a couple of sips, a gentle fruit flavor comes out. Finish is somewhat crisp. Had this with a Thai eggplant, bean, and tomato salad and it went quite nicely. I first found this at Trader Joe’s for around $4, of all things – it’s definitely worth it!

Chateau de Pena "Ninet de Pena" 2006 Cuvee Rose – A good, basic table rose from the makers of my favorite red box wine. Expect nothing fancy here. The nose is straightforward -- a little bit honey and flowers. Full bodied full for a rose and more than a bit acidic. The finish is bone dry. If you’re just sipping at it on it's own, it's decent. But for something to throw back if you're eating some meat or other earthy stuff and for some reason you don't want a red, it's hard to beat this for $5-6.


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Wine Over Water -- the followup.

Last week’s Wine over Water event went well. The week before the event, the remnants of Hurricane Ike slammed Cincinnati with an awful windstorm. Over a million people were without power for some period of time. One of the last places to regain power was the Purple People Bridge – the staging area for our little shindig. Thanks to a generator for the band, some well-placed arc lamps, candles, and the ambient light of the Cincinnati skyline, the show went on…

There were five Kentucky wineries and four “international” pouring stations. Of the Kentucky wineries, by far the most pleasant surprise was Shandio Valley Winery. Hailing from Carrollton, KY – these folks hadn’t knuckled under to the market for puckeringly sweet fruit wines that many of the other local wineries crank out. Their Riesling Reserve was Alsace-style…bone dry, yet with a very pleasant fruit nose and well-balanced palate. They also were pouring their “Ted’s Red” – one of the lightest-in-color Grenaches I’ve ever seen. Despite the color, the body was full of fruit, and the finish held up more strongly than I expected. Best part – both these wines were under $15, so they receive the Vine’s seal of approval. If you’re headed down towards Louisville, stop in and see Harold and Jami. They’ll treat you right.

The other local wineries? Most of their wines were well out of our price range, and few of the wines were exceptional enough to really comment on extensively. Wineries should not be selling bottles of Chambourcin or Norton for $20. Period.

As for the other pouring stations, we had two reds and two whites, the offerings were:

Alice White 2007 Shiraz – a pleasant enough sluggable red. A pretty typical Australian Shiraz – lots of fruit, some tannin and vanilla at the end. Simple and drinkable. $8-9.

Woodbridge 2006 Pinot Noir – of the “international” wines, this one was my least favorite. To me, it came across as a pinot noir trying to be a merlot and just missing. I usually don’t think “fruit bomb” and “pinot noir” together, but this was about as close as one can get. I would guess you’d need to decant the heck out of it to get to any complexity, but if you just want something you can throw back for $6-7, it’s OK.

Ruffino 2007 Orvieto Classico – I really preferred the whites to the reds that were selected for this event. I didn’t have any input into what we ended up pouring, largely because…well…I was in the Mediterranean when they made these decisions. But this wine took me back to the ship again. We were initially scheduled to go to Orvieto on our trip but our tour was cancelled. Alas. This wine is probably a good indication of what we’d have encountered. Fresh nose, light, appley and crisp to taste – this is an extremely refreshing wine that goes extremely well with any fish or light soup. $7-9.

Monkey Bay 2007 Sauvignon Blanc – This was the wine that I became most familiar with as the evening went along, since I was stealing sips from the bottle for much of the evening…to keep my palate sharp, of course. This Kiwi offering is fun in a bottle. A classic Marlborough sauvignon blanc -- full of grapefruit, pineapple, mango, and almost any other tropical fruit you might want to list. The palate had some weight to it, and it didn’t finish as crisply as many sauvignons, but it was still a fun wine. From the reactions of the folks at the event, I had a number of people tell me that this wine was the “best on the bridge.” I would concur after my samplings. $9-11.

By the time we finished the strike of the event and everyone had gathered for a farewell drink on the patio of one of the organizers, we were all happily exhausted. It’s always good to see an event go off well – especially when there’s no electricity!

Same time next year, everyone – put it on your calendar and join us…


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Tare What?

Hang out with corkheads long enough, and someone will eventually start talking about terroir. Wine's typically not something to be scared of, so what gives?

No, not "terror" -- "terroir!" It's pronounced "tare-WAHR" and is the backbone of any wine. Specifically -- it's where the bloomin' grapes come from.

The term is often used in discussions of the soil in which grapes grow, but I prefer the broader definition. Terroir certainly includes the soil itself, but also encompasses the climate and the topography of the growing region. The most obvious example of the expression of terroir is in the classification of French and Italian wines.

To wit, the terroir of the Bordeaux region produces a certain type of wine. That’s then further divided into the specific area of Bordeaux (Pomerol, Margaux, etc.) and then even further into the various Chateaus – like Lafite-Rothschild, et al. You see this more and more with many American wines as well. You’ll see wines labeled “Central Coast” or “Willamette Valley” – and these wines often get down to listing the individual vineyards from which the grapes are harvested.

So, why does all this matter? What difference does it make where these wines are from – especially wines like the ones we’ve got here – wines that aren’t the tippy top of the scale?

Because where the grapes are grown can tell you as much about what’s in that bottle as the grape varietal itself. If you’ve been reading the Vine for awhile – or even if you’ve just stumbled your way through Wine School, you’ll notice that there are often huge flavor variations among wines made of the same grape. The largest of these flavor differences go hand in hand with geography. For instance, a sauvignon blanc from New Zealand will generally have flavors of tropical fruit, a white Bordeaux often has a lighter, minerally taste, and an American sauvignon might taste more like grapefruit.

Terroir also explains why some regions grow certain grapes. Pinot noir, for instance, needs a very particular type of climate. That’s why so few regions produce the grape. And it’s no accident that New Zealand is about as far south of the equator as Oregon and Burgundy are north.

I bring all this up because knowing a wine’s terroir (and the general flavors of wines from that area) comes in very handy when you’re trying to find a wine either to pair with food or just to have on its own. As a rule of thumb – wines grown in cooler climates tend to be more delicate and have more complex flavors. Warmer climate wines tend to be higher in alcohol and have much more powerful fruit tastes.

One of the complaints you'll often hear about wines in the price range we're most interested in is the "uniformity of flavor" these wines often have. "One tastes like another," you'll hear many people say. Even among similarly priced wines from the same country, you’ll find significant differences. As an example, I tasted three American syrahs -- often considered to be fairly uniform. I looked at three, all between $10-12:

I started with the J. Lohr 2005 South Ridge Syrah. J. Lohr's syrah comes from Paso Robles. Red wines from Paso Robles (about halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, and inland across the Santa Lucia mountains) have some consistent notes across varietals. The Paso Robles Wine website quotes Matt Kramer’s book in stating that almost all their reds (they grow primarily Cabernet, Merlot, Grenache, and Syrah) have soft tannins and rich fruitiness. This is another perfect example of terroir description -- common flavor elements across grape varietals. This syrah falls squarely along those lines. The nose of this wine is big, fruity and smoky. It tastes much like it smells -- with flavors of blueberries, blackberries and leather. The finish is leathery and dry, but the tannins soften considerably as the wine opens. If I hadn't known better initially, I'd thought I'd been handed a cabernet, and this certainly could pass as a cabernet’s first cousin.

From there, we move on to the Rock Rabbit 2004 Central Coast Syrah. Rock Rabbit grows most of its grapes slightly north of J. Lohr in the "Central Coast" region near Monterey. The wines from this region tend to be big and juicy, and this syrah also follows right along. According to the winemaker, this wine is made in "Australian style," and I would concur. The nose is big and plummy -- a fruit bomb to be sure. The flavor is very fruit dominant, although it mellows a bit after a sip or two. Plenty of plums and licorice, and the finish is only slightly dry. It's quite a contrast.

Finally, I went with the Hogue 2005 Syrah. I expected a big difference, and I wasn't disappointed. Hogue is from Washington State, where the weather is considerably cooler than what you'll find in California. As such, the wine is much more balanced and almost delicate. The nose has much more subtle fruit -- raspberry comes to mind, with a smoky undertone. The flavor is "smooth earthy" -- blueberries and caramel. The finish is long and not very dry. A very pleasant wine, and a much more complex one than the other two.

So, have no fear of terroir – let it be your ace in the hole when it comes to picking the “right wine.” Much as in the description of Paso Robles above, you can feel pretty safe in picking out a flavor profile once you get exposed to a certain terroir. Give it a go and see what you find!

The House Wine Evolution

I was recently asked, "So…Wine Guy…what wines do you usually have just sitting around to drink at home?"

Aside from the sheepish little grin I still get when someone calls me "Wine Guy," the question got me thinking. Honestly, there hasn't been much of anything resembling a "house wine" around the Vineyard for quite awhile. One of the upsides to this wine thing is that there's usually something new around to try. One of the few downsides? It's possible to lose sight of a "favorite" everyday wine.

(If you remember, the general answer to "What's your favorite wine?" is "Whatever's open.")

Digging back through the foggy mists of memory, there was a time not too long ago when there were standard, inexpensive wines purchased pretty consistently 'round here...before the daze of regular wine tastings and regular worship of Most Things Sonoma.

One move and two jobs ago, I usually kept a bottle of Rosemount Estates Shiraz-Cabernet around. When I started courting the Sweet Partner in Crime, I started buying the 1.5 liter bottles instead of the standard size. I revisited Rosemount's 2005 vintage this week for old time's sake. Rosemount's wines usually fall into the "pop tart wine" category, as many of their offerings are pretty indistinguishable from other inexpensive Aussie wines. Unlike most cheap Aussie Shiraz, this wine has a little more depth and character. The nose is very fruity, as you'd expect. The body is full of blackberries and cherries with a nice smoky undertone. The finish is fruity. It's very nice to drink just sitting around, and the smokiness makes it a better than average choice for barbecues and the like. Burgers and chocolate each go hand in hand here. Look to pay $6-9 for a 750ml, but you might as well splurge at around $12 for a big bottle.

Drinking wine with the SPinC opened my eyes to, among other things, three important observations. First, she introduced me to a set of oversized wine glasses she'd break out at the slightest provocation. Learning about proper-sized drinking implements is key to proper tasting. Second, I learned never to leave a full wine glass on a low table if Jessie (the lovable chocolate lab armed with the Furious Tail of Utter Carnage) were nearby. Third, I learned that it's socially acceptable to drink white wine. I almost exclusively drank reds before we started dating. She almost always had a bottle of Meridian Chardonnay on hand when I would stop by. The vintage in the store right now is the 2006. It's still a pretty decent quaff. The nose is melony with some oaky scent. I remember Meridian being much oakier in the past, but they've dialed that flavor back a good deal, leaving a much better balance between the oak and fruit. It's certainly on the oaky side of the "oak vs. butter" competition. It's quite pleasant on the finish, too -- nice fruit and a lingering smoky flavor. At $5-7, it's a great deal.

The closest thing to a "house wine" we currently have is the nearly-everpresent 1.5 liter bottle of Redcliffe 2006 Sauvignon Blanc in the fridge. One of my favorite finds of the last year or so, this is a good solid everyday wine. I wrote about this wine in my recent article in Cincinnati Magazine. It's from New Zealand (where they make my many of my favorite Sauvignon Blancs). The nose is full of grapefruits and peaches. The body is crisp with lots of grapefruit flavor and the finish is nice and crisp, making it both a great sipping wine and a "what do we have that will go with this?" food pairing wine. A 1.5 liter bottle can be had for around $12.

"But wait, Wine Guy," you're saying, "You told us not to drink wine straight out of the fridge! You can't taste the flavors!" Very true...but I learned a neat little trick. Pour a glass of wine chilled to fridge temperature. Put the glass in a microwave for 10 seconds -- no more. Ten seconds in a microwave takes the chill off the wine, leaving it at practically the perfect temperature without harming the flavors.

(As the SPinC aptly pointed out, "Um...couldn't you just leave the wine out on the counter for a few minutes?" Of course you could -- but what's the fun in that?)

So, what wines do you keep around on a regular basis for everyday drinking? Inquiring vines want to know.

Ol' Red Ned & Ol' Rog Fed

About six months ago, the Sweet Partner in Crime wanted to start taking tennis lessons. Both of us had batted a ball around before, but neither of us really knew how to hit groundstrokes properly, serve consistently, or use any strategy other than "try not to shank the ball onto the adjoining court."

Along came The Coach, a colleague of the Sweet Partner's, who responded to her request to "give us a few pointers" by setting up weekly lessons, breaking down our bad habits, and giving us the ability to actually keep a rally going. Coach is always good for the pithy gem. On the first day he worked with us, he came out with this:

"You know what the best shot in tennis is? The one that goes over the net. After that, there's a world of possibility. The wind could blow the ball in. You could hit a bird. Your idiot opponent could hit a volley from the baseline. But if it goes in the net, the point's over. Everything goes from there."

As the weeks passed, I realized that I have the natural ability to play "caveman tennis" (not a good thing), learned that moving on a tennis court is like playing basketball defense instead of trying to fill a hole like a linebacker, discovered that I can hit a decent one-handed topspin backhand, and discovered a competitive intensity in the SPinC I'd never seen before. (Note: Hit to her backhand if you play her. One she lines up her forehand, you're toast.)

Obviously, six months isn't enough to turn me into Roger Federer (although I actually have been mistaken in public for Andre Agassi…), but improving has been fun. So, in honor of the Australian Open championships, the Vine features Australian Shiraz. Shiraz, as I've mentioned before, is Australia's most notable wine export. There are any number of inexpensive wines from Australia -- known down under as "plonk" or "red ned." These "pop tart" wines are often interchangeable, and I wanted to move a bit beyond Little Boomey & Yellowtail. We're approaching the Finals, after all.

These very distinctive Australian creations are, like a weak backhand volley, squarely in the Vine's wheelhouse:

d'Arenberg 2004 "The Love Grass" Shiraz -- Love Grass itself is a weed is native to Africa; introduced in Australia as livestock fodder and to stabilize soil. The name comes from its uncanny ability to spread by attaching its seeds to anything that brushes by the stalk, be it animal, vehicle, human, etc. [Insert your other easy spun double entendres here.] The nose is...honestly, I don't know. The SPinC and I puzzled over this one. Leather? Coffee? Mint? Vanilla? We couldn't quite get a handle on it, but it's distinctive and we liked it. It was also, to steal from Sauvignon Blanc, a little "herbaceous." [Again, insert appropriate "grass" comment of your own.] The flavor is big and full of berries, but the finish is a drop volley of tannin across the back of the tongue. This big, herby Shiraz is great on its own, but it blew our doors off accompanied by a little dark chocolate. $12-14.

Pillar Box Red 2006 -- Pillar Boxes are the British Empire's contribution to the mail system. These metal boxes were the forerunner of the modern public drop mailbox. These were used throughout the British Empire in the 1800's. They initially were any number of colours, but eventually (as typical of the English) standardized to red, hence the wine's name. As for the wine itself, in the US, this would be a "meritage" -- a blend of half shiraz, a good portion of cabernet sauvignon, and a dollop of merlot. The results? Impressive. The nose has layers of interesting aromas: cherries, vanilla, and something like a baking cookie. It's a well-balanced wine with plenty of fruit and a nice amount of tannin. The finish is long, a little fruity, and dry. $10-12.

Shoo Fly 2006 "Aussie Salute" -- Another blend. This one is largely Shiraz, about a quarter Grenache, and a splash of Viognier. The "Australian Salute" is the term for waving one's hand in front of the face to flick away the ubiquitous bushfly. The name of the winery and the decals on the bottle pay homage to this Australian native arthropod. It's said that the Australian accent is a product of nose-breathing to avoid inhaling these buggers. Inhale deeply of this wine, however! The natural perfumes of the Viognier amplify the fruit of the Shiraz, bringing you a powerful combination of plums and coffee. The flavor is fascinating. All three of these grapes are featured in Cotes du Rhone -- and the flavor is, as the SPinC put it, "Like a fruity Cotes-du-Rhone without the funk." The finish is somewhat fruitier than a C-d-R, but with similar tannins, allowing it to flex between earthy foods and chocolates. A very nice find. $11-13.

Hooroo...