Just Naked

I'll admit, I can be influenced by wine marketing. Larry Lockshin, an Australian researcher on wine consumerism, determined that the average person takes 38 seconds to purchase a bottle of wine once they've decided on the type of wine that they're looking for -- and the wine label has the largest degree of influence on the average purchaser's choices.

When I get a case of writer's block, I'll usually wander down to the wine store and make an aimless wander through the aisles to try to get inspiration. While facing down a blinking cursor is frustrating, it does give me a ready excuse to buy a few more bottles. (Isn't this why shoe shopping is supposed to be therapeutic for many women?)

In any case, I was amongst the whites when the Four Vines "Naked" 2007 Chardonnay caught my eye. There it was -- a perfect theme for an article: The Naked Vine does "naked wine." A minute and a half and a couple of impulse buys later, and away we go. This is where wine shopping clearly differs from shoe shopping -- I've never seen a decision made on a pair of shoes in under a minute. What can I say? I'm decisive. And influenceable.

(Pardon me while I prepare to duck the black slingback pump the SPinC is ready to throw at my head...)

Now, aside from being an easy trigger word for someone with my particular mental slant, "naked" for Four Vines actually refers to their winemaking process, specifically that their Chardonnay was produced unoaked. The wine started off with light notes of citrus and lavender on the nose. There's a strong lemony flavor and a lot of acidity for a California chard, which I think is a good thing.. As promised, there was no oak and only a little buttery flavor, which I found mostly at the "beginning of the finish." The finish is crisp, lemony, and lasting. It's a very pretty wine; more delicate than I expected in a Santa Barbara County chard and exceptionally balanced for a wine of this price. ($11-14)

Along came dinner -- a grilled citrus-and-herb marinated grouper over couscous and a diced red pepper from our garden. Unfortunately, the Four Vines ended up turning the flavor "fishy" (grouper is not a "fishy" fish in my experience ordinarily), so we called an audible and opened one of my other impulse purchases, the Washington State-grown Snoqualmie "Naked" 2007 Gewurztraminer.

For Snoqualmie, their "Naked" series of wines (they also make a naked Riesling, Merlot, Chardonnay, and Rosé) is produced "as close to au natural" as possible. These wines are grown from 100% organic grapes -- or, more accurately, grapes that are in the process of being certified organic. We decided to go with the second naked wine of the evening because...well...gewurztraminer goes with almost everything and we needed something that could handle an interesting pairing. It worked. Even with the mild gewurz sweetness, it had enough acidity to handle fish. Since the fish wasn't heavily peppered, the pepper on the wine's finish really came out and added a really nice balance to the food's flavor. When we tried it on its own, it started us with a lingering scent of herbs and apples. Its flavor is quite peppery with some honey and melons on the back end. The finish is tingly-peppery and fruity. ($11-13)
I hit a snag after that wine, though. I looked high and low and couldn't find another naked or nude-themed wine. (Well, except for Cycles Gladiator, but we've already discussed that, and see below...) So, I took some poetic license and went with the Charles Smith "Eve" 2007 Chardonnay ($12-15). Smith describes his wine as "sinfully tempting," so it doesn't seem like much of a stretch to think he was trying to design a wine that encourages people to drink in the buff.

Eve welcomes you into her garden with a light nose of melons and lemons. She tempts you with a very pleasant and extremely interesting flavor. She's got a crispness and creaminess that reminded me of a lemon crème turned into wine (without the overpowering sweetness, of course). Her finish is nicely balanced with some more lemon and just a touch of oak. She's great for sitting back and sharing, and she didn't back down from our citrus and chili powder marinated shark with an avocado-orange salsa. (OK, OK, I'll quit while I'm behind...)

On a separate, non-wine related note, I always enjoy sifting through some of the SiteMeter data that comes in about how people find the Vine. After I posted my article about the banning of Cycles Gladiator in Alabama, I had a ton of Google search hits from people looking for "naked gladiator." I'm interested to see if some of you get called into your boss' office at work, since we'll probably overload any content filters for "naked" out there...

Wine Dinner -- The Phoenix

Hungry, thirsty area foodies looking for something tasty to do this week should take note. The Phoenix in downtown Cincinnati will be hosting a wine dinner this Wednesday, September 23rd. The dinner will feature six Burgundies from Chanson Pere & Fils with commentary from Chanson's export manager, Sophie Baldo.

According to general manager Kent Vandersall, the menu and pairings go something like this:

• Chanson Vire-Clesse 2006 (passed upon arrival)
• Honey Lime Shrimp, Capellini w/Chanson Chablis 2007
• Arctic Char with White Beans, Mushrooms, and Dried Tomatoes w/Chanson Meursault 2006
• Rosemary Dijon Lamb Chops with Swiss Chard w/Chanson Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2006
• Veal Marengo, Creamed Whipped Parsnips w/Chanson Beaune Clos des Mouches 1er Cru 2006
• Filet of Beef, Carrots Parisienne, Pinot Noir Demi w/Chanson Gevrey-Chambertin 2005
• Fruit and Truffles

Yours truly and the Sweet Partner in Crime will be attending this little shindig, and I'll be posting my thoughts sometime thereafter. Reservations are $70, including tax & gratuity. For more information, contact the Phoenix via their online form or by phone at 513-721-8901.

If you decide to attend, please say hello. I'll be the bald guy.

Dust on the Bottle

There might be a little dust on the bottle,
Don't let it fool ya about what's inside.
-David Lee Murphy

Last night, my brother-in-hairstyle Danny Gold put together one of the more interesting wine tastings I've ever attended. He and a couple of his fellow Party Source pals decided they'd do a tasting of aged wine. Now, we're not talking 1967 Chateau d'Yquem here -- but it was a pretty impressive spread of wines. When I say "impressive," I mean...well...judge for yourself:

1. Jean Laurent Millesime 1997 Champagne Brut
2. Weingut Baumann Oppenheimer Sacktrager 1975 Riesling Auslese
3. Domaine Marcel Deiss Engelgarten 1999 Alsace (white blend)
4. Domaine Zind Humbrecht 1994 Grand Cru Pinot Gris
5. Carmenet Winery 1995 Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon (Sonoma)
6. Azilia 1998 Barolo Bricco Fiasco
7. Castillo Ygay 1989 Rioja Gran Reserva Especial
8. Domaine Tempier 1996 Bandol
9. Barossa Valley Estates 1997 Ebenezer Shiraz
10. Corison Vineyard 1989 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa)
11. Hacienda Monasterio 1996 Ribera del Duero Crianza
12. Ravenswood 1998 Old Hill Zinfandel (Sonoma)
13. Beringer 1996 Private Reserve Cabernet (Napa)
14. Montepeloso Val di Cornia 1999 Rosso
15. L'Ecole 1999 Seven Hills Vineyard Merlot
16. Benjamin de Vieux Chateau Gaubert 2000 Graves (Bordeaux)
    
17. Paradise Ranch 1998 Pinot Blanc Icewine (British Columbia)

I haven't had the opportunity to try much 10+ year old wine, much less 30+ year old wine, so I was fascinated to see how these wines held up, how they'd age, and so on.

For me, the highlights were the Riesling (which tasted like nectar with a wonderful spiciness); the Pinot Gris (a late harvest pinot gris -- not at all what I expected from Alsace); the Bandol (an earthy, smelly, yummy wine with a smoky finish that went on for ages); the Ribera del Duero (mammoth, sumptuous, and lush); the Montepeloso (an Italian wine with French funk); and the Bordeaux (2000 is a fantastic vintage).

None of them had gone to vinegar, although a few were clearly past their peak. The 1995 Sauv Blanc was certainly past its prime, as were the Corison (a bit flat) and the L'Ecole -- which tasted like a basic Merlot. Even so, how often do you get the opportunity to even taste a wine that's legitimately aged to that point?

Add in Riverside Restaurant's hosting and buffet for us, and we had quite an evening.

I'd certainly recommend getting on Danny's mailing list. He sends out fairly regular wine notes, announcements of these tastings, and information about wine dinners he does in conjunction with various local restaurants. For more information, you can email Danny here.

Wine Over Water -- Sept. 19th

It's that time again. The 3rd Annual Wine Over Water wine tasting event on the Purple People Bridge between Newport and Cincinnati. Yours truly will be pouring at this event, so please come by to say hello.

If you'd like to order tickets in advance, you can click on the link above.

More information:

A one-of-a-kind event, Wine Over Water is a wine tasting held over the Ohio River on the Southbank Purple People Bridge with stunning views of the Cincinnati skyline.

This annual charitable event is hosted by the Newport Citizens Advisory Council (NCAC), a citizen’s group dedicated to improving the community of Newport for residents and visitors alike. Proceeds from this year’s event will benefit the repainting of the Southbank Purple People Bridge and ECHO Soup Kitchen.

Participants will enjoy sampling a selection of international wines as well as offerings from some of Greater Cincinnati’s preeminent boutique wineries. This delightful evening of wine, hors d'oeuvres and live music is designed to engage a diverse audience of residents from all around the area and build a sense of community while supporting a good cause.

Southbank Purple People Bridge
Newport, Kentucky (located on the East side of Newport on the Levee)
Saturday, September 19, 2009
7:00-10:00pm
Tickets: $20 in advance, $25 at the door

Ticket price includes commemorative tasting glass.
Please bring your ID with you, as you must be 21 to be admitted to the event.
Local wineries will have bottles of wine for sale at the event, should you discover one you would like to take home.

Hope to see you there!

Cabernet Franc

The flipside to that whole "getting away from a wine varietal that I've really enjoyed in the past but haven't tried in awhile" issue I discussed in the Riesling column is "this has been right in front of my face for years -- why haven't I been drinking more of this?" Not long ago, I grabbed a bottle of Cab Franc on the recommendation of a friend of mine, and I found I really, really liked it. Predictably, research followed.

Anyone who's been drinking wine for awhile has probably heard of Cabernet Franc, but it's usually just a blending grape -- often mentioned as the "third varietal" in most Bordeaux blends and meritages, backing up Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. (Petit Verdot and Malbec being numbers 4 and 5 of the five in Bordeaux, as you might remember.) It also gained a small degree of infamy by being the other grape dissed by Miles in Sideways, but without nearly the vitriol he reserved for Merlot.

So, what is it? Cabernet Franc is a red grape. It's chemically very similar to Cabernet Sauvignon, and little over a decade ago, some grape taxonomists discovered that Cabernet Franc is one of the two parent grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon. (Sauvignon Blanc is the other.) I found this fascinating, since Cabernet Sauvignon usually produces heavy, tannic wines, while both its parents vinify in a much lighter, more acidic style.

While the grape hails from Bordeaux, the only French wine made exclusively from Cabernet Franc is Chinon from the Loire Valley. Cabernet Franc grows relatively well in cooler climates, so it can be found domestically in places like the Pacific Northwest, cooler areas of California, and more and more in New York. Canada has begun growing a fair bit of it as well.

Cabernet Franc yields a lighter, somewhat perfumier, more subtly flavored wine that often has an "herbal" character. Aside from its chemical similarities, it's easy to see after tasting it why it's blended so often with Cabernet Sauvignon. Its fruitiness and relative lack of tannin can be used to "round off" some of the harshness that exists in many Cabernet Sauvignons, especially young ones.

Foodwise, most cabernet francs aren't going to be the best pairing for big beefy meals with rich sauces. However, the herbal character and acidity make it one of the few red wines that can go with salads. It also generally pairs well with pork, chicken, and fish. You can also have it with Mediterranean foods, roasted vegetables, and it makes a nice alternative to Chianti for red sauces.

Since it's not still produced in huge quantities as a single varietal, these wines tend to be a little tougher to find and are a little more expensive. There aren't many Cab Franc dominant wines that have the high end price point of Cabernet Sauvignon (other than Chateau Cheval Blanc, Miles' "special bottle" in Sideways, which, ironically is about a 50/50 blend of Cabernet Franc and his other favorite, Merlot) but there aren't very many on the low end of the scale either. I've rarely seen one for much under $15. There are some reasonably priced ones out there, like the following:

Domaine de Pallus "Les Pensées de Pallus" 2005 Chinon -- If you want to understand why Cabernet Franc done as a single varietal can be a stand-in for an Italian red, try this one. Again, Chinon is the only French 100% Cabernet Franc variety. Like most French reds, it's best with food, and definitely needs to be allowed to breathe for a minimum of half an hour after you uncork this pink-topped bottle. Once the fume and the funk clear, the fruit begins to open, and you start getting aromas of raspberries and smoke. As for the weight and flavor -- imagine a Beaujolais and a Chianti snuggling up and getting to know each other really well. It's got the chalky minerality of a Chianti, but the fruitiness of a Beaujolais -- and it's best served with a slight chill. It's heavier than either of those wines, and it's OK on its own. I tried it with a Spanish recipe for monkfish that called for a rosé. The Chinon worked just as well, and it played nicely off of the red pepper, onion, and almond puree that made up the sauce. (The whole thing was over couscous.) Also balanced well against the sautéed spinach we had as a side. $17-20.

Wit's End. "The Procrastinator" 2006 Cabernet Franc -- This Australian Cab Franc from McLaren Vale has a name after my own heart. What struck me first about this wine was the mouthfeel. It's got a slightly thick, velvety texture even though the body itself isn't all that heavy. A very "friendly" wine for starting an evening . It's smoky and seductive like a pinot noir, but has a bit more weight and tannin. The nose is a clean smell of cherries, which are the flavor we picked up the most. We had this with a mustard-covered, grilled pork loin chop with some roasted vegetables. This pairing was "absolutely heavenly," according to the SPinC. The roasted, grilled flavors brought out more of the tannin and smoke in the wine, which still keeps much of its fruity brightness with the food. Around $20.

Hahn 2006 Central Coast Cabernet Franc -- For a great contrast in styles of this grape, you'd be hard pressed to find a better one than this wine from California and the aforementioned Australian. This wine is initially quite "hot" tasting and really needs a little time to decant, like most any California cabernet. It's much more alcoholic and has considerably more weight and tannin than the Aussie entry. The nose again is cherries with a little bit of leather and smokiness. The wine is medium bodied, with some fruit, but a full, tannic finish with some chocolate flavors lingering. Mushroom burgers (beef burgers topped with sautéed mushrooms, not grilled portabellas) and bulgur with walnuts and chopped spinach were our pairing with this one, and the higher levels of tannin and alcohol allowed it to set up nicely next to earthy, meaty flavors. The acidity also held its own against the spinach. A "food" franc rather than one to drink on its own. About $15.

Cracking Open the Good Stuff, Volume 2 -- Palumbo

Palumbo 2006 "Tre Fratelli" Estate Reserve Meritage -- From Temecula, 40% cabernet sauvignon, 40% merlot, 20% cabernet franc. A Bordeaux blend that tasted Italian.

I put it alongside an "Eggplant Pam-esan" -- one of my favorite meals to make for the Sweet Partner in Crim. Decided to break this one out to celebrate a successful test on my liver.

Turned out to be an absolutely wonderful pairing. I was so happy. So was she. The tannin and minerality went wonderfully with my marinara and the smokiness of the eggplant.

Since a Bordeaux blend, it also worked well with the evening's dark chocolate.

Good times.

Anderson Winery

Not long ago, I was asked to lead a wine-tasting fundraiser for the Madisonville Education and Assistance Center (MEAC). The event, a blind tasting called "The Sauvignons of Spring," gave the folks in attendance the opportunity to sample around 70 different cabernet sauvignons and sauvignon blancs. Each bottle had to be under $15. At the end of the evening, the slightly-tipsy assembled group voted on their favorites.

Honestly, I can't remember the cabernet sauvignon which took top honors, but the announcement of the group's favorite sauvignon blanc raised eyebrows and brought a loud cheer from the crowd. The winner?

Anderson Winery.

No, not wine from Anderson Valley in Mendocino County, California, but Anderson Winery in Hamilton County, Ohio. This very small operation cranked out a white that trumped a collection from all over the world. So, what's the story of this little winery that could?

Anderson Winery is the brainchild of Larry Brokamp, a Cincinnati lawyer, and his wife Kelly. I asked Larry how they got started:

"I started making wine about 8 years ago after my wife and I drove up the Northern California coast and came back down through Napa. We also spent some time in Calistoga.

"When our first daughter, Ella, was born, we passed out our bottles of wine with labels reading 'Celebrating the Birth of Ella Marie Brokamp' with her picture and birth date along with weight, length, etc. Everyone was impressed with the wine and labels.

'My wife had the idea of selling custom labeled wine for special occasions and I looked into licensing requirements because you can't sell wine without a manufacturers license. After about a year and a half of research we figured out how to do it and have always enjoyed it."

They only produce two wines -- the aforementioned sauvignon blanc and a sangiovese-based red. The custom labels are produced to the order of the customer, and are quite nicely done, as you can see here:



Since they make such small quantities of the wines, they don't market to stores and restaurants. Their sales are largely either Internet-based or done through word of mouth. Larry said that the most they've made in a year is about 40 cases. Larry said that he'd like to spend more time on his winemaking, but raising their three kids and running his law practice keeps him too busy to focus on expanding the business too much.


How do the wines taste? Both wines are, by design, simple, straightforward quaffers. Larry said that his goal is to produce "something that most everyone can drink so it can be served at functions such as weddings where there are usually both [regular] wine drinkers and non-wine drinkers."

The award-winning sauvignon blanc is definitely done in an American style -- acidic, but not overly so, with some very pleasant melon and green apple flavors and a mildly tart finish. It's quite popular, and as of the writing of this article, the white was currently sold out. However, there is more in the pipeline.

The red is very "soft." It's quite light (only 12% alcohol) and fruity. The tannins are extremely light -- almost nonexistent, actually. It reminds me a bit of a Beaujolais, right down to the fact that it's best with a slight chill on it. The Sweet Partner in Crime and I had the bottle on a warm summer evening and it was a good, basic wine to just sip on, relax, and watch the neighborhood go by.

Both wines sell for $12/bottle, which includes the labeling.

I've tried a number of wines from "make your own label" places and have found most of them to be barely palatable. Larry and Kelly's wines are a fairly large level above most of those. If you're in the market for some interesting wine-based gifts or if you've got a party to plan, you won't need to look much further than Wooster Pike in Cincinnati.

For more information, check out their website (http://www.andersonwinery.com) or email them at info@andersonwinery.com

Julie & Julia

No, I'm not branching the Vine off into movie reviews -- although anyone that knows me or has followed the site knows that I'm a movie buff. The Sweet Partner in Crime and I decided to walk down to the Levee and catch "Julie and Julia." (And no, I'm not ashamed to say that I was looking forward to seeing a Nora Ephron movie...)

The movie itself was a nice afternoon's diversion -- Meryl Streep absolutely channels Julia Child and Amy Adams does "pixie searching for her purpose" as well as anyone. (Stanley Tucci's Paul Child is a dead ringer for my uncle Harry, also, in so many ways.)

I was really struck by how well Nora Ephron's screenplay (interpreted wonderfully by Adams) actually hit the emotions of a foodie blogger. Little things that showed up -- Adams' reaction when she started getting comments from folks other than family; the giddiness the first time samples showed up on the door; the whole load of "is there anybody out there actually reading this stuff?" stuff. (I like to think the SPinC is a little less frustrated by this endeavor, as well.) Plus, there's just so much good food on screen (well, aside from the aspic). As Vine Reader Mike B. said when we were at Nectar's scrumptious Dinner Club (the theme was "peaches" -- yum!): "When the movie was over, I just wanted to cook something!" I know I did.

The movie's a fairy tale -- since she gets "discovered" and all that. I don't expect a phone call from Anthony Bourdain any time soon. But the thrill I get when the realization comes that a fair number of people actually read the stuff on here -- I think that gets conveyed well in the film. So, thanks to all of you who read the Vine and who keep me plugging away here. It's a great motivator knowing you're out there.

I'd certainly recommend the movie itself, as well. As I said, it was a nice, easy way to spend an afternoon: lighthearted, well-scripted, and (except for a few rough parts in the "modern" segments) nicely acted. A solid, comfortable movie -- think of it as Hogue Cellars Cinema.

Riesling Redux

One of the dangers in writing a wine column is that certain wines can get buried -- wines that I really like, but for whatever reason -- just don't end up making it into the columns all that often. The other day, I was looking at the article from CinWeekly that the Sweet Partner in Crime had framed for me. I noticed in the article that I mentioned Riesling as my favorite wine at the time of the interview, and it hit me...I haven't talked about Riesling in awhile, other than in the context of our recent trip to New York. So, what the heck? Riesling it is! A quick review:

Riesling is known to many folks who are just starting their wine education as "that sweet German wine that comes in the bottle that looks like a tower." That's true. Many cheap Rieslings are simply thick, tooth-searingly sweet concoctions. They don't have to be.

It's true -- Germany is best known for Riesling, but it's a grape that's fairly common in cool climates all over the world. In the U.S., for instance, the best Rieslings tend to come from the Pacific Northwest and from New York -- our colder domestic wine growing climes. As with most cool weather wines, Riesling tends to be fruity and fragrant. They're also wonderful food wines. They're among the most pairing-friendly wines out there, standing proudly next to anything from sausage to Szechuan to sushi. They're some of the few wines out there that don't get absolutely clobbered by capsaicin, the chemical that makes hot peppers hot. Some Riesling, unlike many white wines, can even be aged, so don't get scared if you see older Rieslings in your local wine store.

However, they don't necessarily have to be sweet. You've probably seen more and more "dry Rieslings" in stores as many winemakers realize that not everyone wants a bunch of residual sugar with their meal. Many of the "dry" Rieslings still have a hint of sweetness to them (try some Oregon dry Riesling if you want to see what I mean). While there's not as much variation in flavor as, say, Chardonnay -- each region that grows the stuff tends to put its own spin on it. The Alsace region of France, for instance, makes Rieslings that are fruity, but absolutely bone-dry. They've also got a more mineral character. German Rieslings range from very sweet to dry and generally have strong apple and pear tastes. American Rieslings, even of the dry variety, tend to be on the sweeter side and are usually very fruit-forward.

Jump on back in the Riesling pool if it's a wine you haven't had for awhile. You'll be glad to rediscover it. Here are a few you could consider:

Pierre Sparr 2007 Riesling -- This is one of those Alsace wines that I mentioned. It's a really nice example of a lighter styled, bone dry wine. The nose is of tart apples, with a flavor to match. The finish is crisp with lots of lime flavors. An absolutely delicious pairing with Asian cuisine. I had this with baked trout smothered in tomatoes, green onions, and shiitake mushrooms, flavored with ginger, garlic, and soy. Right around $15.

Leasingham 2007 "Magnus" Riesling -- Australian Riesling has a completely different flavor profile. Much of the Riesling in Australia comes from Clare Valley, a relatively warm region for growing Riesling. Partly because of this climate, the fruit flavors tend to be fuller and the wines are often a little less complex. This particular wine has a spicy, apricot nose. It's full bodied, with intense flavors of peaches and apricots. Finish is fruity and dry with a smoky undertone. The recommended pairings from the winemaker are "seafood and spicy Thai dishes." I'd certainly agree. $10.

Hogue 2006 Riesling -- Hogue, one of my go-to value wines, usually blends their Riesling with another German grape, Gewurztraminer. Gewurztraminer carries a spicy flavor, and that spice comes through strongly on the nose of this wine, as well as some apricot. It's full bodied and is somewhat sweet to go along with the fresh, gentle apricot and pear flavors. On the finish, however, the pepper returns, balanced with a slight sweetness and lasting fruit. The recommended pairings for this are salads or sushi. Anything with a fresh flavor will go nicely here. Again, around $10

Schloss Gobelsburg 2006 Riesling -- If you feel like treating yourself and going a little bit over the $15 (this is more like $20), you can get one of the more delicious Rieslings I've tried in my recent memory. This wine is from Austria -- known more for gruner veltliner, but slowly earning respect (and rightfully so) for other varietals. Simply put, this is a genuinely pretty wine. The nose is full of melon and apple blossoms, but that doesn't tell the real story. The SPinC described it as a "fruity, flowery cacophony." I concur. There's certainly a lot going on here, but the taste is probably best described as apple dominant. The flavor has just a touch of sugar and a little smoky note in the background. The finish is a little bit peppery -- like a junior gewürztraminer -- and slightly tart. Wonderfully balanced and just scrumptious to sip on. For dinner we had a calamari and rice noodle salad with a Thai-flavored dressing and loads of herbs from the garden. Worked nicely.

Lake County, California

Monica from Balzac, who previously let me try samples of both Espiritu de Chile and Golden Kaan wines, sent me something a little different this time around. I opened the box to discover a couple of cabernets from Lake County, California -- two 2005's from Snows Lake Vineyards named "One" and "Two." "One" was 100% cabernet sauvignon. "Two" was a 3-to-1 blend of cab sauv and cab franc. Both wines retail for around $45.

I had to do a little background on Lake County to know what I was getting into. Lake County is immediately to the north of Napa. The soil is similar to Napa's, albeit on more mountainous terrain and with higher elevations. Lake County had a thriving wine business from the 1860's up until Prohibition. Wine production started up again in earnest in the 1960's. There are now about 9,000 acres of vineyards in Lake County (compared to Napa's 40,000+). Lake County, like Napa, is largely known for cabernets -- specifically powerful, tannic cabs.

Tasting big cabernets, of course, is a perfect excuse (like I need one) to fire up the grill and toss a couple of ribeyes on there. No fancy rubs -- just salt, pepper, and olive oil. Sides were some grilled, herbed Yukon gold potatoes and some halved Cremini mushrooms, cooked down in a sauce of ginger, garlic, tomato paste, curry and cumin.

I opened both of these wines a couple of hours before I thought we'd be having dinner. I wanted to give them enough time to breathe. My experiences with tannic wines have taught me that a couple of hours is a minimum for bottles like these. After the steaks came off the grill and were resting, we did a side by side of the two wines.

Even after the time to breathe, the One was a tannic monster. The nose was huge with wood and violets, but the flavors of the wine were obscured initially by the overwhelming tannin. We broke out an aerator and eventually my super-duper Taste of Monterey tasting glass to speed up the process. That helped a little. The other flavors began to emerge. Layers of smoke, wood, and tobacco. (I guess this is what people refer to as "cigar box.") There are some currant and blackberry flavors in there, too. The finish hits you with a surprisingly tart burst that fades pretty quickly into a lingering coffee taste. "This doesn't finish as long as I thought it would...and I think that's a good thing."

The Two was more pleasant. The cabernet franc blended in mellowed the experience considerably. The wine wasn't as tannic, but still certainly wasn't to be taken lightly. ("Doesn't beat you over the head" was my note.) The nose was much more berry and vanilla. The flavors were better balanced -- cherry, blackberry, and cocoa dominated. The bitterness of the tannins start out very strong on the finish, but they mellow quickly into smoke and chocolate with a mineral undertone that certainly wasn't unpleasant.

With the meal, both wines changed. The One lost a little of its tannic edge and revealed more blueberry flavors. That tart burst on the finish remained, which I didn't find all that pleasant. The Two was much better. The tannins balanced the fruit nicely when paired with the steak. The mushrooms were really interesting, since they had a spice to them. The spice flavors gave way gently to fruit, then as the wine finished the spice picked back up pleasantly. That was probably my favorite gustation sensation of the meal.

I had high hopes for these wines with chocolate, but I was disappointed in both. With both Dove dark chocolate and a brownie, each wine ended up a tart, tannic overload. Honestly, the leftover two day-old zinfandel that we had laying around before was a much better pairing.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that these are bad wines by any stretch. They simply aren't wines built for my palate. A couple of weeks ago, I linked an article from the Daily Beast by Keith Wallace entitled "The Great Cabernet Ripoff," which bemoaned the huge price increase in recent years for Cabernet Sauvignon. In my semi-uninformed opinion, my guess is that this huge increase is driven by folks who are more interested in collecting wine than actually drinking the stuff. Wine collectors' eyes big up when they see the words "aging potential." You've seen shelf talkers for wines that might state something like, "Drinks well now, but best between 2012-2017."

The growers of premium Napa-style cabernets market to this. Both these Snows Lake wines are so powerfully tannic that, at least for me, they just aren't very pleasant to drink right now (although we both much preferred the "Two" to the "One") -- and I can imagine that they're built to be bought and stashed in a cellar for four or five years until the tannins settle down. I know that there are many folks out there who can taste these wines now and project how they will drink in 2015. Maybe these are good investments for some folks at $45 a bottle. As much as I really appreciated the opportunity to try these wines, they're difficult for me to pass appropriate judgment upon. Now, if some of you want to pick some of this up and invite me over in a few years to give them another go, be my guest!

Before I leave Lake County, I wanted to find a Lake County wine that was more in my price range. I ended up with the Guenoc 2006 Lake County Cabernet Sauvignon for about $11. It certainly wasn't bad, and you could open this up right now without batting an eye. It started with cedar and blackberry on the nose. It's medium bodied, slightly alcoholic tasting, with straightforward blackberry flavors and some earthiness. The finish is a bit clipped -- starts strong with fruit, but quickly tapers off into a mild tannin. It's not nearly as complex as its more expensive cousins, but it's not built to be. It's a pleasant enough cabernet, especially with food (and it's much better with chocolate...).

Alabama Wine Porn: Cycles Gladiator

Oh, fer gossake. You can't make this up. Thanks to Vine Reader Bev E. for cluing me in to this little gem.

I did a review a while ago of Cycles Gladiator wine. It's pretty widely available, and you may have seen the bottle in your local wine store. They make a few different varietals, and those I've tried are at least inoffensive, if not appropriately decent. However, "decent" is apparently not the appropriate descriptor in the Great State of Alabama. The wine's label is apparently a bit much for the gentle souls in The Land of the Crimson Tide.


Alabama's state Alcoholic Beverage Control has put a statewide ban into place on the sale of wines in these bottles, and given a huge free marketing boost to the folks at Hahn Winery -- producers of Cycles:

The Alabama ABC code states that "No advertisement may include any illustration(s) of any person(s) consuming alcoholic beverages or any person(s) posed in an immodest or sensuous manner." In a letter to Alabama restaurants and retailers, the ABC stated that the sale of Cycles Gladiator wines are prohibited. An attorney for the ABC was quoted as saying the label was submitted twice last year for approval and it was rejected both times. However, an Alabama citizen sent the ABC a bottle, indicating it was still being sold in stores. Consequently, the ABC issued a cease and desist order.

I do declare...this wine label has given me the vapors! Help me to my fainting couch...

UPDATE: Vine reader Jason M. suggested I make this update to the Cycles label, making it more palatable to the folks in Alabama:

remembering the face of my father

It's natural, I guess, for a fledgling wine reviewer like myself to fall into the game of adjectives that is the wine reviewing world. It's a seductive trap for writers -- trying to "describe a sunset to the blind" by getting super specific in my writeups; trying to reduce flavors and sensations to minute components rather than simply writing about how the damned stuff tastes and whether I've enjoyed it. (After all, that's why most of you are here, right?)

About six months after I started the Naked Vine, the Sweet Editor-in-Crime read one of my columns and said, after reading one particularly clunky entry, "Who's your audience again? I don't think you're writing for them, or for me for that matter. You lost me about halfway through." She was right, of course. (Stop gloating over that admission, m'dear...) I was trying to prove that I was a "real" wine writer by churning out 400 words about a $6 sauvignon blanc. As the old cliché goes, you gotta play to your strengths. Being a junior Parker isn't mine.

After I write up my tasting notes, I admit I sometimes check my work against those of other writers to see if I've at least landed in the ballpark. I don't expect to have the same descriptions, but there should be commonalities among different tastings of the same bottle. I was doing just that for a cabernet sauvignon I'll be featuring in an upcoming column. I came across a review so glorious in its ostentatiousness that I did a literal spit-take. Check it out:

"The bouquet offers an immediate burst of slate, lead pencil, cedar and tobacco leaf, smoky and toasty oak and hints of intense and concentrated black currants and black raspberries; given a few moments, the nose draws up touches of leafy, dried herbs, brambles and underbrush. All of these elements testify to the wine’s structural integrity and tannic power. In the mouth, though, [this wine] feels sleek and elegant; it’s packed with spice and black fruit flavors but it’s neither fleshy nor over-ripe. The wine gains depth and dimension in the glass, darkening, as it were, as more mineral, tannin and oaken qualities make themselves known. The finish concludes with another burst of spice and a wild high-note of foxy plums."

Egads. Lead pencil? Brambles and underbrush? Foxy plums?

I realize that I shouldn't be too critical. This writer clearly has a particular voice and niche and writes to it. Even so, I hope this isn't like any review you'll ever see from me. If any of you ever notice me veering too far in that direction, feel free to metaphorically kick my ass.

By the way, I did look up what "brambles" refers to. It's a fancy way of saying "blackberries." I'm still stumped on "foxy plums." For the sake of full disclosure, this particular writer won the 2009 American Wine Blog Award for "Best Wine Reviews," so what the heck do I know?

Some Hometown Love -- NuVo Restaurant

You may have noticed that the Sweet Partner in Crime and I do a lot of cooking. Comes with the territory with the wine stuff. Friday, though, we decided we needed to head out. We had a nice night at our disposal and we decided to take a stroll.

NuVo "Modern American Cuisine," originally located in Florence, moved to Newport last September to great reviews and some nice buzz. Embarrassingly, we'd never been there, even though it's less than a mile from The Naked Vineyard. We decided to remedy the situation.

NuVo, for those of you who aren't familiar, is in the old Mokka location on York Street between 5th and 6th. The location isn't large -- it probably can seat around 50 people inside. The back patio (where we sat) seats about another 15 in the back. Like many of the other better restaurants in the Cincy metro area, they do a lot of interesting things with locally raised ingredients. While not everything on the menu was truly "locavore" (Understandably...the Ohio's not a good place to harvest scallops) we could tell the chef, Michael Peterson, made an effort to incorporate wherever he could.

We ordered a couple of glasses of Dom du Tariquet Sauvignon Blanc to go with our salads -- which was NuVo's take on a Caesar (the roasted garlic dressing was delicious), topped with some delicious goat cheese. We were lucky/unlucky with this course. We got large pours of the wine since we got the last pour from the last bottle of that wine. They also ran out of the promised pink peppercorn croutons, so they gave us...well...larger portions of everything else in the salads. Not a bad trade.

Between courses, our server brought us a palate cleanser -- a carrot and orange sorbet topped with a dot of balsamic vinegar. This little bite was a combination of strangely complimentary flavors. Sweet and tart -- with the carrot flavor very much up front. I could have imagined these flavors in a salad instead of a sorbet, but cold and creamy certainly worked.

The night was still fairly warm and neither of us were quite feeling up to anything overly heavy. We ordered a couple of glasses of Ugni Blanc (also by Tariquet) for our entrees. The SPinC ordered the seared red snapper with vanilla and orange glazed veggies over some annatto spiced rice. I had the restaurant-made fettuccini with lobster, pancetta and tomatoes. Ordinarily, I've seen pasta dishes like this done in cream sauces -- but this one was in a sweet corn and lemon juice emulsion.

The snapper was meaty, tasted exceptionally fresh and was cooked to perfection. The combination of the annatto flavors with the fish gave us happy flashbacks to our Aruba vacation several years back. The pasta was exceptional. The lobster's creaminess, the firm flavor of the pasta, the pancetta's smoke, and the acid of the tomatoes were rounded off by the sweetness and tang of the corn and lemon juice. Plenty of care went into making the flavors balance in both dishes. Harmonious is the adjective I'd use.

We didn't end up staying for dessert (we had a date with some Dry Creek zin and chocolate on our back patio at home), but the server did bring a final sweet. Homemade dark chocolates (one with a caramel filling) topped with a little sea salt and a "Dr. Pepper reduction." Yum.

NuVo's certainly not an inexpensive meal. The entrees range from $17-28. Our bill, which included a salad, our wine, and two entrees was $86, but for a nice night out -- definitely worth it. The service was laid back and extremely pleasant. We were able to relaxedly dine without feeling rushed. The only drawback was the décor on the patio -- which was, for all intents and purposes, nonexistent. (The SPinC said, "Give me $500 and an afternoon and I could really spruce this up.") That nitpick aside, we'll definitely be back -- hopefully for one of their Wednesday tapas nights, which sound absolutely fabulous.

Arizona Stronghold

“Learn to swim, I’ll see you down in Arizona Bay…”
– Tool, “Aenema”

"Wine, song, food, and fire/Clothes, shelter, and seed.
No more need for the old empire/(When the) indigo children (come.)"
-- Maynard Keenan, "The Indigo Children"

Maybe Maynard Keenan is just being prescient.

Keenan (lead singer of Tool, A Perfect Circle, and Puscifer) writes a song in the mid-90’s about Los Angeles sliding into the ocean. At around the same time, according to the trailer for the documentary “Blood into Wine,” he has a vision about growing grapes and making wine on an Arizona hillside. A continuation of the same dream? Whatever his motive, he headed to the hills in Jerome, Arizona, to plant himself a vineyard.

Along the way, Keenan hooked up with Eric Glomski, an Arizona native and true believer in the power of the southwestern soil. Glomski’s Page Spring Cellars has as a part of its mission statement (that I wholeheartedly embrace), “Good wine is not strictly the esoteric fare of nobility: Wine is for the people.” Glomski served as Keenan’s oenological advisor for Caduceus Cellars and the pair founded Arizona Stronghold Vineyards as a joint “second label” wine for both Page Springs and Caduceus.

I harbor a natural suspicion towards “celebrity” wines. As my friend Jim Voltz of Bond Street Imports put it, “That’s how you sell average wine – market, market, market, market.” I’ve tried a number of wines “made” by famous folks – and the results have been mixed, at best. Many of them are pretty average, driven by cute logos and recognizable names rather than actual winemaking acumen. (For the record, Bond Street's wines are anything but "average")

I’ve been curious about Keenan’s wine, though – his music may not be everyone’s glass of grapes (and it’s hit or miss with me, depending on my mood and state of mind) but it’s always painstakingly crafted, highly structured, and remarkably creative. I figured if he were going to undertake winemaking, he'd probably throw himself into it as a creative endeavor with great attention to detail rather than having it simply as a vanity project. I also figured Arizona could become an interesting viticultural area. Grapes love lousy soil, blazing hot days, and dry cool nights. My old Southwestern stomping grounds have all of those in abundance.

When I saw the press release come down the pike about Keenan & Glomski’s recent publicity tour, I made an inquiry (when I saw they weren’t coming nearby) and they generously offered to send some samples. Eric was also good enough to pass along some recipe recommendations which, as you know, I can’t resist.

The first one we tried was the Page Springs Cellars 2007 Estate Vineyards "Landscape." This is a 50/50 split of syrah & petit sirah -- all estate grown in Yavapai County. This was described as a "classic Rhone" style. After giving it a little time to open up, we were greeted with a wonderfully fragrant nose of caramel, mint, and blackberries. The body, as expected from a blend like this, is very full and loaded with the syrah's fruitiness. Layers of berries and smoke work towards a finish that goes on for a minute or more by itself, ending with some very firm, balanced tannins and chocolate flavors. I asked Eric (a self-admitted "die hard meat eater") what food would go best with these wines. He suggested "highly seasoned meat, like lamb or goat." Taking this cue, we put together a lamb shoulder braised in tomatoes with sides of wilted spinach & sautéed mushrooms and some polenta cakes. The Landscape is nicely complex and great by itself, but with the lamb -- transcendent. Mint always goes well with lamb, and those tones paired up nicely -- but you add in the tannins slicing through the fat, and you end up with a slightly fruity, exceptionally smooth finish. Retails for about $40.

Next up was the Caduceus Cellars 2006 Merkin Vineyards "Anubis" -- This wine, named for the dog-headed Egyptian god who protected and guided spirits through the underworld, marks the transition of Caduceus to using predominantly Arizona-grown fruit. Eric said that the wine "bears the Bordeaux mark" -- which makes sense, as it is largely a cabernet franc/cabernet sauvignon blend with a little syrah and sangiovese thrown in for good measure. We found it was an absolute must to decant this wine. Even after an hour open, there was still a lot of alcohol on the nose, and the fruit was extremely tight. After a good deal of swirling and decanting, the nose of violets and smoke start to emerge more strongly. Powerful dark fruit flavors and licorice lead to layers of smoke and balanced tannins on the finish. Eric's recommendation was a big steak, and I went with porterhouse. Divine. The wine brought out the flavors in the meat and the fruit in the wine ahead of any lingering fatty taste from the steak. We saved a little for chocolate and sipping, and the flavors continued to balance and marry. The Sweet Partner in Crime summed it up: "It's seductive. It's really fruity, but not an overwhelming fruit bomb. It's big and tannic, but that doesn't detract from the fruit or dry you out. It's not like anything jumps out at you. The whole flavor just draws you in." About $35-40 for about as well-balanced a wine as you'll find.

Finally, we had the Arizona Stronghold 2007 "Nachise" Red Wine -- another Rhone blend named after Cochise's son, former leader of the Chiricahua Apache. The blend is about 2/3 syrah, with the rest grenache and petit sirah. Once decanted, I expected it to be earthy with a little fruit. While a Cotes-du-Rhone is a reflection of the soil with its funk, the Nachise is a reflection of the sun and sky. The fruit flavors are certainly forward, but they're extremely bright for a wine this big. The earth that exists in this wine provides a nice backbone that's full without being thick. The finish is nicely long, with some tasty coffee and plum notes. It actually reminded me more of a Rioja than a Rhone. Rather than going back to meat, we paired this with a "Southwesterny" vegetarian meal -- grilled, marinated portabella mushrooms with avocados and a salsa of black beans, corn, tomatoes, cilantro, and fresh cayenne pepper from our garden. The Nachise embraced both the earth and the spice and held its own against the spread of flavors. About $20 and well worth it.

If these selections are any indication, the partners of Arizona Stronghold (and Arizona wine in general) have an extremely bright future. As for Keenan, was he looking for future oceanside terroir when he planted the Merkin vines? In a 2006 interview with IGN, he quipped: "This is a prime spot for vineyards. An untapped resource. But the master plan is to have the Merkin Vineyards Bed and Breakfast set up for when California drops in the ocean. Beach front property and the New Napa Valley. You got it."

The Great Cabernet Ripoff

Vine reader and ol' drinkin' buddy Nate L. passed along this little gem of an article from The Daily Beast:

The Great Cabernet Ripoff

I really can't argue too much with too much in here. I was talking to another friend of mine who regularly attends private "wine tasting competitions" of cabernets and such. The latest cab to win one of those competitions cost around $300 a bottle, which is utterly ridiculous.

As you all know, I'm pretty partial to wines I feel like I can crack everyday, but after a certain point -- do you really gain anything other than showing people that you have $300 to spend on a bottle of wine?

UPDATE: K2 writes on a similar subject (and about Kings X!) over at Under the Grape Tree.