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July 22, 2010
Nothing better than an executive board meeting to get the
juices flowing. Officially one year in and the agreement of non-agreements no
longer churns my gut. The topical discussion points sparking multiple side
discussions means health. New business being old business might draw annoyance
or anger, but much less when wine is involved. No, the juices I am talking
about are the gem wines I enjoyed with dinner. I believe 8, 9 or maybe 10 wines
passed clockwise, and I did remember to jot a few down that I will explore down
the road. One little jewel was a Domaine Raymond Dupont-Fahn Bourgogne
Chaumes des Perrieres. This is one of those that share a fence with the
rich and famous but finds itself just outside the pedigree/price gambit. Dare
not call it Meursault yet rejoice in the approachable price of $28.99. Flavors
flow of peach and a hint of lime and a chalkiness that provides a charm to this
wine. The embarrassing delight in public for me was the muted orgasmic sounds I
bleated after inhaling the head of a 1976 BV Georges de Latour. This
wine was a delight of antiquity like a worn leather wingback or a grandfather
clock. The color showed age and the tannins gone enough to indicate there isn’t
much time left. In fact, it may have offered up its last breath of life for our
momentary pleasure. And for that, we thank you. This wine truly was a friend
and confidant to my rack of lamb. The other I took note of was the Le Cadeau
Equinoxe hailing from the great northwest. Oregon nurtured this fruit to
develop dark raspberry, red cherry and blueberry with moments of thyme and
cassis. What can I say; I am fortunate to bump up against the fences of those
pedigreed wine aficionados.
July 13, 2010
One (that would be me) must realize that a bottle of Kim
Crawford Sauvignon Blanc, a 2005 Alto Cabernet Sauvignon, a 2005
Callabriga Douro Red and a 1997 Plumpjack cab, when taken together,
do not pair well with a screen door. In what could have been a youtube viral
video, I managed to overstay my welcome at the Wino John palatial estate when a
quick trip back from the bathroom left me blind to the sliding screen door.
Fortunately for me (but not for the door), my knee was the first of my body
parts to force its way through the woven mesh. Had my stride been different, I
would have been wearing a screen door custom fit mask. And we were having such
a good time to that point. I believe my visa to the private town owned by WJ
has been revoked and my car will not be allowed to exit the highway on any road
that would lead to the estate.
Fortunately for me, I had eaten a steak the size of a small
dog. Had the screen incident happened prior to dinner, I would have been
relegated to the truck stop on the highway for dinner. To that point, I had
been enjoying a fine Cuban cigar and finishing a South African cabernet. Then I
had to go to the bathroom. Oh boy, getting in was fine, but getting out proved
confusing. Boy, was that a long ride home. Anyway, I did want to say thanks to
Wino John for his hospitality, as he is no longer taking my calls.
2005 Callabriga Douro Red
$ (19.99)  
This blend of Portuguese grapes
boast touriga nacional, touriga franca and tinta roriz giving a black fruit and
plum flavor with a touch of oak and vanilla and hints of the precursor of port
without the sweetness.
2005 Alto Cabernet Sauvignon
$ (14.99) 
A cabernet from a South Africa’s
Stellenbosch region vineyard that dates back to 1693. This wine, for the price,
brings some nice dark cherry and dark chocolate to the glass. There is a touch
of tobacco on the finish. An easy drinker without too much to think about.
July 11, 2010
I found something interesting, as I was f’ing around the
Internet. This isn’t exactly wine related but it ain’t a political bitch
session about how screwed we small business people are either. For those
science dweebs, I found a density chart for liqueurs. Why do I need a density
chart, you ask? Hey, when you are having a crazy dinner party and want to make
those floaty after dinner drinks, you may need this information. You know,
those drinks that are layered with different liqueurs that combine in your mouth
to taste like something else.
Everclear (95%
ABV) 0.80
Everclear (75%
ABV) 0.84
Southern
Comfort 0.97
Tuaca 0.98
Water 1.00
Green
Chartreuse 1.01
Grand Marnier
1.03
Cointreau 1.04
Peach Schnapps
1.04
Sloe gin 1.04
Peppermint
schnapps 1.04
Benedictine
1.04
Brandy 1.04
Midori melon
liqueur 1.05
Rock and Rye
1.05
Apricot brandy
1.06
Blackberry
brandy 1.06
Cherry brandy
1.06
Peach brandy
1.06
Campari 1.06
Yellow
Chartreuse 1.06
Drambuie 1.08
Frangelico 1.08
Orange Curacao
1.08
Triple sec 1.09
Tia Maria 1.09
Apricot liqueur
1.09
Blackberry
liqueur 1.10
Amaretto 1.10
Blue Curacao
1.11
Galliano 1.11
Green Crème de
Menthe 1.12
White Crème de
Menthe 1.12
Strawberry
liqueur 1.12
Parfrait
d'Amour 1.13
Coffee liqueur
1.13
Crème de Banana
1.14
Dark Crème de
Cacao 1.14
White Crème de
Cacao 1.14
Kahlua 1.15
Crème de Almond
1.16
Crème de Noyaux
1.17
Anisette1.175
Grenadine 1.18
Crème de
Cassis1.18
So remember, like a good free mason, the foundation is the
most important. Lay in the densest syrupy, sweet crap liqueur first. Then take
a well-chilled spoon, holding the concave side up, allow the next, lighter
liqueur to spread out evenly. It amazes your guests, making you seem like a
professional alcoholic.
I am thinking a Kahlua, white crème de cacao, Tia Maria. I
don’t know what that might officially be called but my mouth just started
watering. I do think I had something called a bloody eyeball. I will have to
spend the night reconstructing it from this chart.
Have at it.
July 10, 2010
I received an email today and the subject header read,
PS, I Love You. Dude, Wino Bob gets these all the time. OK, maybe
not. So you could imagine how excited I was thinking I finally had an adoring
fan confessing her love for the Wino. Damn it! I opened the email to find a
flyer announcing the 8th Annual Petite Sirah Symposium being held
July 27th at Concannon Vineyards. What caught my attention was the
topic for the panel discussion, Can Petite
Sirah become the next Pinot Noir. Let me save you the time and
money. NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was going to end this entry there but I guess I need to
bolster my position. The simple reasoning behind my point is that petite sirah
is too bold for the nuanced palates of the pinot nuts. There is too much 'in
your face' fruit and not enough “subtle complexities” for the crowd. Second, PS
is not as food friendly as PN. For me, I would make petite my meal so I fill my
stomach with whatever the table has to offer. For those pedantic enough to
spend their life chasing the terrior of Burgundy, they will never convert to
tougher skinned grapes. I say Petite will convert merlot drinkers, is a nice
change up for syrah lovers and will amuse cabernet lovers, but will never ever
replace the pinot. Besides, that panel is hosted by a guy calling himself Dr.
Vino. What good could come from a guy that hides behind a self-appointed
made-up casual wine-related name. The nerve of some people trying to be hip and
educational at the same time. What does he say, take two pinots and call me in
the morning? Just so we are clear, the WinoStuff copyright stamp reads 2000.
Dr. Vino’s copyright on his blog reads 2002. Dr. Vino is located in the NY
area. Wino, Vino, you be the judge.
I think I should email my input to the panel discussion so
they know what position to take.
July 9, 2010
This year is going down as the year of least number of new
wines written about by me. I got in a rut this year and started buying more
than one bottle of each wine. Thursday night TV has me drinking from the same
case and limiting what I can write about for this page. It’s back to one bottle
of each for a while so I can get back to basics. Last night, I was able to find
a wine I haven’t had before. You can imagine my excitement. Whoopee, a new
experience. As I was glued the television awaiting the big announcement (no,
not where in the world will LeBron go), who is the snake in the BB House.
Actually Thursday night doesn’t hold my attention, until this fall when The Big
Bang Theory moves from Mondays. Thank God for DVRs. I filled my glass with a
Portuguese red and sat down to watch a Buster Keaton silent movie called, The
General. I agree, a far fall from nights of dining at Bacchus or crazy cabfests.
A quiet night with a black and white silent movie. It happened to be Buster’s
last independent before he was part of a large studio and lost some of his
control.
I guess my New Years pledge of not writing about current
events has lessened my verbiage.
2005 Quinta de Cabriz Reserva, Dao
$ (15.99) 
The blend of 40% touriga nacional, 40% Alfrocheiro and 20% tinta
Roriz bring a cherry cola, fig and raspberry mix. This is a nice drinking wine
for a simple meal but not complex enough for a fine dining experience. Robust
enough for a silent movie but it wouldn’t hold up for Hot Tub Time Machine, if
you get my drift.
June 26, 2010
I don’t know what September held for young love but it
turns out that the three Musketeers of the Wino community have birthdays between
yesterday and today. Look, the economy sucks so here is your present from me.
Happy birthday to Wino Odd Job, Big Bob and Wino Rocker. I wonder if their
parents were hippies or something and there was a big rock and roll drug orgy
weekend that culminated in wino soup. (I think I just threw up in my mouth a
little.) What better way to celebrate than a Pig Roast? OK, it wasn’t actually
in their honor, but we didn’t tell them that yet so we will keep this just
between us.
Back when we picked the date for the roast I had no idea it
was such a special date. Not to worry, I will have forgotten it by next year.
I am really not much of a birthday celebrator. But the weather couldn’t have
been nicer. The pig, which slept two days in a citrus vinegar marinade and slow
cooked for 8 hours, was incredible. The meat was soft and moist and flavorful.
The skin was crisp and baconesque. I followed the teachings of Andrew Zimmern
and asked the chef to carve out some cheek (facial, not ass) for me to try. The
meat was darker than the rest but soft and buttery. I wasn’t going to push it
and ask for snot, I was tempted but passed.
The warm weather was ripe for a crisp rose and we served a
chilled Tuck Beckstoffer’s 2008 Hog Wash. It was a hit. In fact we sold
through the inventory we brought in for the event and have orders waiting to be
filled next week. This cabernet sauvignon, syrah, merlot blend opened several
eyes with its dry finish. We had a bunch of, “Oh no, white zinfandel” comments
when we were pouring. Fortunately the wine changed some minds and accomplished
what we had hoped. Embrace PINK in the hot, humid summer days. The red fruits
are there in a cool, light, refreshing style. This is the third event we served
a Tuck property product and all have met with great value to quality comments.
The true star of the day was the Raymond Vineyards R
Collection Field Blend. This seven grape sonnet came up with rave reviews
from the crowd. The fruit was complemented with cedar and smoke. How could
this not pair well with the pig? There was raspberry, red and dark cherry and
even plum polished off with a touch of currant and tobacco. This wine is a
tremendous value at $13.55.
We finished the dinner off with an introduction to South
Africa in the form of Tamura Pinotage. Look, pinotage is a love it or
hate it wine. True to form we had lovers and haters. I found the wine to show
more fruit than most, but with definite tobacco and tar flavors. The crowd was
kind and appreciated the exposure to this grape. The lack of purchases at the
end of the night summed up the experience.
I know Wino Odd Job wasn’t expecting to spend his birthday
with a pig and a crowd, but at the end of the night I think all worked out.
Here’s a toast to a century more fun nights with friends and food and great
wines experiences.
June 25, 2010
OK, so we weren’t asked to leave. Fortunately we finished
our meal at Gourmet Café without incident. The locals sure weren’t crazy about
our presence. It might have been the 5 bottles of wine on the table for the
three of us. Nonetheless, the two wines my associates brought were delightful.
My bathroom looked like the Gulf oil spill this morning, but the wines were
showing elegance and maturity. These two 1997 Californians could have been the
main course and dessert. I did enjoy my cavatelli with pancetta, peas and vodka
sauce. I brought along two Spanish samples sent to me for review. I will
dispense with them first. The 2006 Senorio de Unx Crania was a
tempranillo highlighted with garnacha. It started out tight and ascorbic but
settled into an OK drinking wine with dark fruit flavors and a hint of vanilla
on the finish. I wasn’t unhappy with this wine but had I spent more than
$12.00, I would not have given it a look. The 2006 69 de Lasierpe Garnacha-Cabernet
Sauvignon was dreadful. Not one I would want to drink again. Thanks for
the offer but it turned me off.
Fortunately the 1997 Pine Ridge Rutherford danced
around the glass with glee. The blend is 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, 5%
Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot and 4% Malbec and just passed the 75% necessary
to label it cabernet. Rich black fruits dominated this wine with the presence
of cassis and still-viable tannins. The color remains garnet and alive offering
a treat in each sip. We finished dinner with the 1997 Conn Creek Anthology.
This blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc poured
with a brick color and the most enticing aromas of plum, fig, dark cherry and
cedar. The mouth-feel was thick as syrup but the wine finished with the
subtleness of a velvet scarf. This was dessert. This should have been plated
in a crème brulee cup and offered as the God’s nectar. I believe if I filled a
tub with this wine, my buoyancy would equal that of the Dead Sea’s.
These two wines brought to light the reason it’s great to
have friends with money and taste. I just keep wondering why they agree to have
dinner with me.
One topic of dinnertime conversation that I can talk about
here was a new feature inspired by Wino John’s frequent trips to Asia. We will
be offering wine pairings for exotic cuisine. First up is fried scorpion on a
stick and white burgundy. The sweet, crab-like flavor of fried scorpion will
pair well with the creamy richness of the chardonnay. The crunchy texture and
the buttery finish of white burgundy show like drawn butter over lump crab
meat. So next time you see the street vendor with scorpion on a stick, don’t
pass him by. Break out a Montrachet and enjoy. The stingers are removed so
don’t be shy.
June 20, 2010
Two quick notes... First let me say to those of you
that can enjoy the day with your fathers, make the most of it. It's a tough day
for some cutting two ways; enjoying the benefits while remembering the loss.
Second, sorry about the technical glitch yesterday. It was one of those days
that were a cyber nightmare. What did become official from the glitch was the
fact that yesterday was the tenth anniversary of this site. Ten years ago, I
knew little about wine and much less about the Internet. Wino John grabbed the
technical reigns and I found someone to help us get a domain and hosting site.
Our renewal came due and I never realized it was still in the hands of the
person I first spoke with.
Today, I simply want to thank all those wine industry
individuals, winery owners and winery employees that have furthered my wine
understanding. The major shout out goes to Big Bob who put his energy into
helping and probably his job on the line to invite me to many industry events.
I still laugh to myself (I do that often, when I am alone, in my third floor
dank room) when Big Bob sent me an email from his boss about one of my reviews
of their wines. At the time I bought the wine, a Malbec, the big guy’s company
was not the importer.
I chuckled to myself about the argument I had with an
academic from the University of Bordeaux. Mostly I laugh at the fun I have had
at dinners with those winemakers or winery owners I prematurely thought had no
sense of humor. Look, I haven’t hit it off with everyone and there are those
who think wine is serious. I do have a nice Rolodex of friends around the globe
who share a laugh and a meal and a beautiful bottle of wine when we can.
Happy Anniversary to you, our readers. If we didn’t have
you, I would be doing this for my personal journal. Fortunately, Al Gore
invented the Internet so I can share all my thoughts with the world. Who needs
flying cars in the 21st century when I can have my thoughts beamed at
the speed of light to the homes of wine lovers all over the world? Here’s to my
liver holding out another 10 years.
June 13, 2010
Embarrassingly, I just saw the date on my last entry. I
guess I am getting old and not enjoying the breadth of new wine experiences as I
once did. I did attend the Lehigh Valley Food and Wine Festival last weekend
but left my tasting notes somewhere other than my pocket. There were a few
wines worth commenting on. The one that grabbed my attention was a private
label syrah of chef and restaurateur, Emeril Lagasse. I had a
preconception prior to tasting and avoided it several time. As he only makes it
available in his restaurants, I figured I wouldn’t waste my time. But the clear
headed Other Bob convinced me to stay open and try it. I must say, it wasn’t
plonk that Emeril was just trading his name off. Unfortunately, the pourer at
the table knew nothing about its price or where the fruit was from. That was a
bummer. I would have enjoyed a few bottles if the price was right.
I did also enjoy the 2007 Emilio Moro Ribera del Duero.
This tempranillo was all about bright red fruit on the front but mellowed in the
glass to unveil some blackberry and currant. A smooth finish and a touch of oak
made this wine something I will be buying. I found it very food friendly for
the mix of fare at the festival.
On a side note, I was flipping through a Food and Wine
magazine and saw a full-page ad for Silver Oak. I don’t much recall seeing them
advertise like that. Is it the economy that has them splashing copy in the
magazines? Does it dull the finish of their cultish position? What is
happening to the wine world?
May 29, 2010
This weekend officially opens the beach/summer season in
New Jersey. The weather should lend itself to backyard bar-b-qs, fun with
friends and chilled white wines. Don’t forget to take a moment to reflect on
what we are memorializing. Yesterday, the body count in Afghanistan reached
1,000. I only heard a passing comment about it. Young men and women volunteer
to serve this country and unselfishly sacrifice so we can sit home unengaged in
understanding their plight. How many of our potential future leaders have
abruptly been taken from their families, friends and country?
Our thoughts and prayers are with the
families of the brave young men and women who have given their lives and will
never have the chance to spend this weekend grilling, or sun bathing or
partying.
May 22, 2010
I’m just sayin’. No, really. The social lubricity of wine
made last night’s supper series a road trip through the canyon of funny. Though
it was a smaller, more intimate evening than last month, it allowed
personalities to shine and storytelling to take center stage. Fortunately for
us, our newest member to the group knows 83 per cent of the population of New
Jersey. Officially bequeathing him the moniker 'Wino Jimmy', from this day
hence there will never be a pregnant pause of uncomfortable silence during the
evening. If Wino Jimmy doesn’t know you, he knows your cousin, your aunt or
your grade school neighbor. Like the sun in our planetary structure, his
gravitational force drew in the heavenly bodies and asteroids alike (Wino Rocker
was the asteroid). I simply put it out there that if you attend at an upcoming
event, by night's end, you will identify a friend or family member that has at
one point elliptically orbited the Jimmy universe. For that there will be no
darkness for years to come, I’m just sayin’.
Dining on homemade lasagna and tenderly moist meatballs, we
enjoyed several Italian wines. The first, a white blend from Veneto that drew
the elegance of the spring evening into the restaurant. The 2009 Maculan
Pino & Toi was refreshingly floral without being offensively sweet. The
blend boasts Tocai, Pinot Bianco and Pinot Grigio. I know that’s a lot of Pinot
for a guy to be writing about but for a summer white wine there’s nothing wrong
with that, I’m just sayin’.
The second wine was the 2008 Di Majo Norante Sangiovese.
This wine hails from the southeastern part of Italy and paired well with the
marinara atop the meatballs. But the night was graced with the 2005 Barone
Ricasoli Rocca Guicciarda Chianti Classico Reserva. At one point, I
overheard Mike commenting that he smelled leather and licorice but it turned out
to be Darius’ underwear and not the nose of the wine. This wine could have
simply been called a side dish as folks got up from the tables, filled a glass
and strolled around the landscaped backgrounds of the Tree Tavern property. The
wine was a course unto itself.
With the risk of Wino Rocker drooling over his keyboard as
he reads this, I dare say that next month’s pig roast will be an event. The
event already is half filled and we just announced it. Those wishing to attend
can go to the
www.highpointwines.com web site and order tickets from the front page. The
wines for the evening are also featured there. Though the pig will be marinated
for two days prior to the event, I plan on being stewed half way through it, I’m
just sayin’.
May 11, 2010
I wasn’t quite sure how to post this one so I will simply
state that the 1994 Kalin Chardonnay Cuvee W is excellent.
Kalin Cellars was founded in
1977 and is located in Marin County - just north of San Francisco. It is
owned and operated by Terry and Frances Leighton.
They are the only two people between the
grape and the bottle - there are no assistant winemakers, cellar
workers, etc. - just a little help from their friends.
I will also say that the 1977 Dow Vintage Port makes
one not need anything after a great meal but a simple plate of assorted cheese.
And in conclusion I will just say I was disappointed in my
chance to drink the 1990 Chateau Canon La Gaffeliere.
I say no more to ensure the black helicopter doesn’t follow
me down the street. I am not looking to be asked to get into a dark late model
van and driven anywhere to answer for what usually is a lengthy write up. I
kind of said all I might say at this time. The true statement of bearing
witness to my own words was the volume of these three wines that were or weren’t
left in the glass at the end of the night.
Did I just hear tires squealing around the corner? Hey
gotta go…
May 10, 2010
I don’t know if numbers mean anything but I thought 5-10-10
was cool. Not at much as 10-10-10 will be. The date is definitely not as scary
as 12-21-12 will be. Hey all you Bordeaux collectors, I am telling you now,
starting in January, I will be over to start consuming your wine. Why hold onto
any of the good stuff? As you know, the earth, sun and the center of the black
hole in the Milky Way Galaxy will be in perfect alignment on that date. I am
sure the gravitational forces will suck us into the hole. Then you will be sad
you never had the chance to enjoy your collection of great wine. I will start
taking appointment to assist in consuming collector’s cellars in September. I
would like to start with large format collectors first and work my way down to
the 750mls. To make sure I have the proper time available, I will not be
consuming Burgundy wines. (Except maybe to rinse between Cult California Cabs
and Priorat Especials.) I plan on being shit-faced with a crazy straw in a case
of Lafite when the earth starts wobbling off axis and, by the time we are
hurling towards the center of the galaxy, I will be bathing in Haut Brion and
shampooing with Grange. I had made arrangements for an enema of Screaming Eagle
just as we start to boil from the ever decreasing distance from the sun. Let me
think about that, would the sun get pulled in first so we will actually freeze
from the sun being farther away, or will we be pulled towards the sun first then
get sucked into the black hole? Where is Sheldon when I need him? Maybe Wino
John can do the math on that and let me know if I should pack shorts and a
T-shirt or my snorkel jacket as I set out on my Mayan Wine Consumption Tour?
Hey, I think there is something to a civilization that didn’t have indoor
plumbing yet was able to calculate the exact year the winter solstice would end
life as we know it. I call "Mayan End of the World Fest". Who’s with me?
April 30, 2010
I can tell you this, it wasn’t Ole Black Water in my
glass but it did keep on rollin'. It was dark and inky and happened to be the
2004 B.R. Cohn Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection. In an intimate
setting of twenty-two for dinner, Dan Campbell, eastern regional manager from
B.R. Cohn, presented the best they had to offer. Chock full of anecdotal
musings, Mr. Campbell held the crowd while I drank the fruits of their labor.
As a social lubricant, we warmed up with the 2008 Sangiacomo Chardonnay.
This low production wine was bright and lightly oaked making its structure
supportive of food and not overbearing.
We moved into the
2007 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir full of bright red fruit and a hint
of earthiness on the nose. Nice balance and food-friendly acidity. At this
point I dug into the Peppercorn Encrusted Beef Tenderloin sweet demi glaze.
Pleasantly there appeared a glass of 2007 Sonoma County Zinfandel. At
one point, I wasn’t sure if I smelled the peppercorn or the wine. I do remember
not having to use a knife on the zinfandel. Though not overbearing, it boasted
a 15.1% alcohol. I was hoping for a doggy bag.
But the night was
not over. I still got to enjoy a glass of the 2007 Silver Label Cabernet
Sauvignon followed by the 2004 Olive Hill Cabernet. OK, so now my
taste buds are humming China Grove and singing Takin' It To the
Streets. I’m Doob’d up, in the groove; realizing life doesn’t suck right
now. Conversation at the table is flowing, Wino John is connecting and running
down the list of every B.R. Cohn wine he has ingested since 1998. I did see
Dan’s eyes glaze over and roll to the back of his head twice while Wino John was
chatting. It kind of looked like when a shark gets ready to attack when they
show all white of their eyes. I was kind of scared for a moment.
The Felix-the-Cat
moment came when Pam LaBell of Lauber pulled out the bottle of Special
Selection. Let me tell you, that wine still has time to rest in the bottle and
soften the edges of the tannins. Great bottle of wine and very well priced for
its pedigree. As I blissfully made love to my glass of Special Selection, a
bottle of Syrcab and a glass of 2007 B.R. Cohn Cabernet Sauvignon Port
danced about the plate of chocolate mousse cake.
The best part was
that no Doobie was hurt during the making of this great wine night.
Unfortunately, a nasty rumor was circulating that they are not really brothers.
I vehemently defended the fact that if it’s their name for all these years they
must be brothers.
April 24, 2010
I must say, the Tree Tavern was rocking last night with a
near capacity crowd for the Back to Basics Supper Series. From the first pour
of the Est. 75 Sauvignon Blanc to the
fireside chat with the 2006 Faithful Hound,
there was a buzz and excitement about the night. Maybe it was the warm weather,
maybe it was the medium rare beef and mashed potatoes, or maybe it was the flow
of well-crafted value wines. The simple fare let the wines take front and
center stage. Mike and I were happy to hear the amount of positive comments we
got on the Scott Family Estate Pinot Noir.
Several people expressed that they were not big fans of pinot but the Scott
really opened their eyes. For me, it was the first whiff of its bouquet that
had me intrigued. At $18.55, I say this is a very good value. I believe we
opened some eyes with this wine.
The star of the night was the
Lummis Stratton Cabernet Sauvignon. A Napa cab for just under twenty
bucks? NFW! Way, wino boy. This cab showed well and delivered the
right amount of dark fruit flavors to lift the beef onto its shoulders and carry
it to the dessert platter. Though I didn’t have the chance to experiment, a few
winos said the cabernet offset the sweet carrot cake very well. The supper
series is starting to take hold and we are learning with each event. Our aim is
to host a Friday and Saturday night event once a month. In addition, there are
some special events.
I am looking forward to next month’s supper series though
we don’t have a menu yet. I am sure Mike will come up with something special.
See you there.
April 23, 2010
Life is pretty good when you can go out to dinner once or
twice a week. I had the occasion to dine out twice this week. So life must be
pretty good. Wednesday evening, I joined Mike to taste through some wines.
There were several worth adding to the cellar but the wine I was most impressed
with was the Terlato Cardinal’s Peak. An
Angelina Jolie of a wine. Very well put together like in the movie Gigi.
Wowzers! A Bordeaux-style California wine that impresses from the first whiff
of the heady aroma. Mike also put the Terlato Stag’s Leap cabernet sauvignon
into inventory. I can’t wait to try that puppy.
At dinner last night, I had two wines I never heard of
before. One was a 2006 Robert Karl Claret. How smugly British. The
winery says this:
The 2006 Horse
Heaven Hills Claret (red wine) is a blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20%
Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, 15% Petit Verdot, and 5% Malbec. The fruit was
sourced from our estate vines at Gunselman Bench, Andrews Horse Heaven
Ranch, McKinley Springs and Phinny Hill vineyards. It was aged in 70% French
oak and 30% American oak for 21 months, 50% of the oak was new. The ideal
consumption is 2 to 5 years from release date, but this wine will develop
for another 5-7 years. The alcohol by volume is 14.2%.
I appreciate the
blend but the wine did not have the robustness one comes to expect from claret.
Then again, I am not much up on boutique wineries from Spokane, WA. In fact, I
am not very knowledgeable of Washington State wines at all. As of right now, I
am not jumping onto the wagon. The second wine was the
2005 Showket Vineyards Asante Sana, a Tuscan-style wine from
Oakville. This wine had a brighter nose of dark cherry, plum and an herbaceous
hint. What I could not figure out was what the supporting grapes were for the
sangiovese. I even went as far as clicking on the winery’s web site. It did
say that 'Asante Sana' means, “thank you very much” in Swahili. I guess I will
have to have another bottle to see what else I can find in the mix.
Tonight is
Supper Series night and it is looking like a sizable crowd. Hopefully the
guests will enjoy the wines as much as Mike and I enjoyed selecting them.
April 19, 2010
If my math is correct 134 cases of wine is equal to 1608
bottles. Since I now am the proud owner of 2 bottles of the 1608, I control
0.0012437 per cent of the 2006 Mastery Wine allotment. The second release of
Las Vegas Master Sommelier Kevin Vogt is resting comfortably in my rack.

I have it on good authority that is wine stands toe-to-toe
with Insignia. As a premature uncorker, I have been instructed to wait six
months before officially tasting my first bottle. I hope I live long enough to
try this wine. I here by declare a BLOTY-fest on October 19th. I
hope that’s a Friday night. In this case, I will make an exception and drink on
a weekday. Only this time. If any one has enjoyed the 2005 release, please let
me know your thoughts.
April 15, 2010
Ouch! Tell me, how much wine do I need to consume to stop
the pain? Tax day, my God in heaven. Wow, I might not be able to sit for a
week. So what does one consume on Tax Day? Anything. Red, white, blush
and gin might be a start.
Well it wasn’t a crazy night, just a simple bottle of
California cabernet. I needed something to keep the faith in America. The wine
had a subtext of BLOTY being comprised of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot,
3.5% Cabernet Franc, 2.5% Malbec, 2% Petit Verdot and 1% Tannat. OK, the
Tannat adds a new twist. Though Tannat has yet to receive official recognition
from the BATF, it adds a smoky plum tone. The wine,
2005 Simi Landslide Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, uses a touch.
As a friend to a medium rare steak, this wine delivers black cherry, plum and
mocha with a hint of cassis. There is a hint of caramel on the finish. Simi
has a long history in Sonoma.
Giuseppe and Pietro Simi founded Simi Winery in 1876. The brothers had
traveled from Tuscany, Italy, to California during the Gold Rush and by 1876
had settled in San Francisco where they began making wine.
When they discovered the rolling hills of Sonoma
County, they were reminded of home. In 1881 they moved their winemaking
operations to the little town of Healdsburg in northern Sonoma County, where
they completed construction of Simi's first stone cellar in 1890.
Hey sorry, too depressed to add
more. I need to meet the punt and drown my misery. I wrote the check and sent
it off and now have nothing left for wine purchasing. I will be drinking swill
or something someone gives me or water for a while. Hopefully, before the end
of 2010, I will be able to buy some wine and write something new. How does
water taste? If only someone can help me change water into wine I’d be all set.
April 10, 2010
Not too often in one's life can you say you were there for
the end of an era. Last night was one of those rare opportunities for me.
Taken completely by surprise, I am shaken to the core. Yes, friends, the
convenience of me buying food and wine at the local Kings abruptly ended last
night at the stroke of 10pm. No longer will I be able to save time and gas
while purchasing a lamb shoulder and shiraz. Now, for the remaining days I have
on this earth, I will be forced to make two stops on a Saturday. Worst of all,
I will be forced to shop at Shop Rite with their crazy layout and no wine. The
traffic might be too much for me to handle, forcing me to eat the wild greenery
from my lawn as salad.
In tribute, I purchased some fresh seafood for this
evening’s dinner and a bottle of Australian cabernet to settle my nerves. The
devastation to my system continued when I saw the leveling of Milan. The
memories of cigar dinners, great pasta and enjoyable entertainment are left to
mounds of dirt and rubble. It’s happening folks, it’s the new world order. The
Obama administration is changing everything that was good in my town. First
mandatory healthcare and now a separation of wine and couscous. The horror of
it all just might be too much for me to bear. I feel a grass roots wine
movement stirring inside me, or maybe a wine and eggplant rollatini stirring
inside. At this point I can’t tell the difference.
As far as the wine, it was a
2008 Woolundry Rd Cabernet Sauvignon. For $9.99 it wasn’t bad. I am
glad I ended on a good note. Mind you, it wasn’t a great note, but for an easy
drinking casual red, I will drink it again. So I bid adieu to the good life and
now must search the neighborhood for a new place to shop. Damn you,
socialism!!!!!
April 6, 2010
I guess I don’t get it out here. Geek world convention is
Las Vegas with a bad economy. I am having a hard time with the wine by the
glass at our hotel bar, it’s outrageous. I know some people come to Vegas and
let it all out but $20.00 for a glass of Geyser Peak cabernet sauvignon?
Come on, people. The economy is still bad. Why not bring people in and allow
them to enjoy a drink or two? Blue Moon is giving me a beer gut. I am afraid
to walk past the mini bar in the room in fear that the motion sensor will go off
and I will be billed for the bottle of Patron in the glassed casement. It's not
very busy in the hotel where the convention is held. Maybe it was Monday
night. Maybe people are in old Las Vegas where you can find a dollar crap
table. I would think a hotel would rather have people playing at a $5.00
minimum table than not playing at a $10.00 minimum. But I’m no Bugsy Segal.
After all the time out there, I only had one dinner that
included wine. We ate at the Daniel Boulud restaurant in the Wynn Hotel.
Interesting how well Vegas and Disney can create artificial environments that
envelop you to the point of altering reality. We dined on the deck near the
pond and enjoyed the large frog that sang, I Got Friends In Low Places.
Our host selected a bottle of 2005 Cliff Lede
Cabernet Sauvignon. Hailing from the
Stag’s Leap district, this bottle paired well with db’s short ribs. A jasmine
and pepper nose immediately filled the bowl and the dark fruit bumped around
soft tannins to elevate the food. I haven’t seen the Lede around my wine shops
but I will be on the lookout.
One note, Vegas sure puts a
red-hot poker up your keister with over charging for bottles. I am glad I
wasn’t ordering the wine or paying the bill for that matter. And do I really
need a salad for $19.00. Is the lettuce treated any differently than the
lettuce I get for $6.00 at other places?
April 1, 2010
As I predicted, six weeks ago Wino John came out on a
Saturday night, now it’s spring. Actually, even if it were the dead of winter,
Wino John would have joined me for our 1989 Bordeaux tasting at the Essex
County Wine Society. I think he can smell barnyard funk from two miles.
Seriously, this was no April Fool’s prank. We did taste 1989 Bordeaux and Wino
John did come out of hiding. We were able to grab a quick dinner at Raymond’s
on Church Street in Montclair, comfort food for the trendy. WJ started us off
with a 1989 Carruades de Lafite. Nicely
played. We finished up and had time to grab the aperitif at the tasting. Then
we settled in at a back table to enjoy the festivities.
The wines were divided into three flights. Like Goldie
Locks, the first two flights had a wine that was off, a wine that still had a
future and one that was just right now.
Flight 1
-
Chateau Beychevelle
- this one was just right now
-
Chateau St. Pierre
- my first pour was musty and the second unimpressive
-
Chateau Poujeaux -
this wine could go several more years in the cellar
Flight 2
The third flight brought tranquility to the table and all
agreed it was the top flight of the night. Though we differed in which we liked
best of the three, they all had class and pedigree.
Flight 3
-
Chateau Pichon-Longueville
Lalande – eloquent. (WJ's Wine of the Night!)
-
Chateau Pichon-Longueville
Baron - my personal favorite of the night.
-
Chateau Lynch Bages
- didn’t live up to the name.
That may be my only time to drink 1989 Bordeaux and I am
glad to have had the opportunity. Pricing is off the hook and I won’t be going
to any auctions in the near future. So for now, I register into my mental
databank the pleasure of these wines and look forward to next season to see what
else we have in store.
Spring dinner is around the corner, should be fun.
March 27, 2010
OMG! I thought I would throw in a bit of the current
culture to show I’m old but hip. I just realized that 'hip' is an old word so
it cancels out the current part. Anyway, last night we embarked on our supper
series journey to the frightening site of a bear, or a yeti, or Wino Rocker
coming out of the hot tub at the Tree Tavern. The sight nearly scared off three
guests. Personally, I am scarred for life. The fare was Middle Eastern and
there were things I still can’t pronounce on the buffet table. Be that as it
may, the stuffed grape leaves were delicious. The lentil rice with mint yogurt
was outstanding. And no one left without tasting the baklava. I dig hummus and
the way Julie enhanced it made my tummy smile. I doff my fedora to her.
Wino Odd Job and I struggled with the wine selections for
the dinner. Fortunately, from the feedback we received, most people were
gracious in their comments. We lubricated the crowd with a clean crisp Cava
2006 Raventos I Blanc Cava Brut "L'Hereu”.
I found it very open to food and was told by one of our regulars that he found
it to be the best pairing of the night with the flavors of the fare. At $17.55
a bottle, I could enjoy this sparkler as a warmer-up at a dinner party. I would
have no problem bringing it to a dinner party and having the host serve it while
I was still in the room. That’s confidence.
We then opened up the surprise of the night,
2007 Victory Zinfandel Parcel 31. This Zin is only 13.8 per cent
alcohol so it doesn’t come out hot. The fruit is there from the start and the
finish is OK. The surprise is that this wine is $8.55 and was positively
commented on before the price was exposed. Let me suggest this one to pull from
your rack when you are just kicking around or you have already-drunk buddies
show up trying to raid your cellar. For Big Ass Zin lovers, this one is not for
you.
With the Zin being the turn, the
2007 Syrocco Syrah was the
river. This wine hails from Morocco, made old world style by a French producer
from the northern Rhone. It comes in at $16.55 and is not the fruit bomb of the
land down under. It needs time to evolve in the glass and bring out its
beauty. Look, I’m not saying I am running off to Rabat, or doffing a fez (note
to self, stop using the word 'doff') but the wine was interesting enough to see
what else Morocco has to offer.
Thanks to all that came out last night for the Supper
Series at the tree tavern. Lent is over so next month, back to a carnivore’s
orgy. Stay tuned.
March 23, 2010
As a young wino, I often pondered what the world would be
like after I left this earth. In my short lifetime thus far, I have seen
tremendous advancements in technologies. I won’t enumerate them but some
highlights are 500 channels of home-shopping in HD, a phone that interrupts you
in a quiet restaurant, cars that defy stopping, a man on the moon for awhile,
and the ability to see German chicks do strange things with farm animals on a
personal hand held device. It would disappointment that one day I would miss
all the continued advancements. But today I realized I have seen the apex of
this great lone superpower. The destruction of this great nation was not from
an invading army, not by the strafing from enemy aircraft or the launching of a
nuclear warhead. No, the monumental fulcrum of this great land was the simple
flow of fountain ink from a pen onto the bill nicknamed
Obama Care. Unlike
the thunderous clap of a bomb or the percussion of a shell, it was the almost
silent scratching of a name on a piece of paper. From this point forward, we
have lost our position as the lone super power and will settle three decades
from now with the ranks of a Eurocentric culture where VATs are necessary,
unemployment is normalized at 11% and we get enough to keep us suckling the
nipple of Government.
So I say as the media fiddled while Rome burned, I am
reinstating the Bacchanalian Orgy as the way to block from my mind, the
crumbling of our civilization. It was a good run. We stood tall against the
British oppressors only to find ourselves two plus centuries later becoming what
we disdained. I am sure with dental care not part of the process, our teeth are
headed back to the crooked, lock-jawed setting of the pub Englishman. We will
find ourselves decades from now working like the French, eating like the Germans
and paying taxes like the Brits. I will be partying like the Romans until
Bacchus himself calls me to sit beside him. Let the wine flow and the orgy
begin. No sense in trying to be entrepreneurial any longer, that too will be
outlawed one day.
March 20, 2010
Wow, were we pounded with rain last weekend. There are
still trees down blocking side roads. The Passaic River is maintaining a
strangle hold on Willow Brook mall and the surrounding neighborhoods. My
neighbors are just getting their power back. But worst of all, it took me an
extra fifteen minutes to go from my house to JR’s for a lunch meeting. How
inconvenient. When will Eagle Rock Ave and River Road be open? The horror
of it all... Seriously, I saw an above ground pool in a back yard topped by two
feet of the river. They are hoping by today, the river and deck around the
pool will be even. Just a hint to the Wayne, Totowa and Little Falls areas; I
have lived in this part of New Jersey for half a century and that river has been
flooding those homes ever since I was a young Wino. If the house you want to
purchase has plants growing out of the baseboard and smells like damp cardboard,
take a pass.
Tired and worn out, I finally did make it to JR’s for a
chat and a bottle with Wino John and the Other Bob. I arrived first and looked
through the staling choices on their shelves. Hasn’t been much new in their
inventory for months. Dare I say we might have to drink Merlot or, God forbid,
Pinot Noir next time just to have something different? After the harrowing
ride, something subconsciously drove me to grab a Meritage. I guess it was
fitting to be the 2004 Geyser Peak Reserve
Alexandre Meritage. That year, the blend was 51% cabernet sauvignon,
25% merlot, 19 % Malbec, 4% petite verdot and 1% cabernet franc. Happy BLOTY
(Blend of the Year). Price tag came in at $$ (44.00).
The wine showed a deep rich color and a hardy mix of blackberry, currant
and dark cherry. The finish was draped in satin.
Please, God, no more rain this weekend. Let the rivers
retreat below their banks so next time I am not inconvenienced. And so those
people get their pool back.
March 10, 2010
Thank God I recovered from Saturday night. I am not sure
which shocked my body more, the Bordeaux blend from Italy or Wino John popping
over on a Saturday night. As you can tell from the frequency of his updates,
Wino John is not one for having frivolous time on his hands. That is why when
the backdoor knob jiggled, I thought it was Wino Rocker. All that guy has is
time. Though scarce, WJ is generous with the wine. He combined two of his
three favorite wine regions in his gift. Make no mistake, California Cabernets
rule his universe, but second place is split between his love of Bordeaux blends
and his enjoyment as a “Boot Head”. Let me be clear, lest any of yous guys
think I said that. Wino John coined the term “Boot Head” for his love of
Italian reds. As only fitting, when the ground hog comes out of his burrow, we
ordered up the finest of local Italian take out and cracked open a bottle of
2006 Tenuta Dell’Ornellaia Le Serre Nuove.
Again, it isn’t me saying “Boot Head”. I put it in quotes as a
verbatim statement from said Wino John.
The wine is comprised by 50% merlot, 35% cabernet
sauvignon, 9% cabernet franc and 6% petite verdot. It shows black cherry,
raspberry, cranberry and a dusting of black pepper topped off with a hint of
toffee on the finish. Nice wine, out of my price range but I guess that is the
spoils of a high-powered techno-geek. This wine is young and has plenty of time
it can sit in the bottle. I appreciate the BLOTY (Blend of the Year) but more
importantly, Wino John did not see his shadow. It could have been due to the
fact it was night, but hooray, spring is right around the corner.
March 5, 2010
I am saving the corny, "don’t cry for me Argentina" line
and I'm going to stay the course. Last night was the ECWS’ foray into the world
of Argentinean wines. I am a Malbec fan and always felt they stand up well to
those cigars that invade late drunken nights. I pride myself on the off-beat
unique wines, but last night I fell into the trap. The wine I enjoyed the most
was crazy expensive and influenced by the California hand of Paul Hobbs. It
kind of defeated my purposes. But this wine stood head and shoulders above the
rest and I believe was voted best wine of the night by the crowd. Honestly, I
would not spend the $165.00 for that wine as much as I enjoyed it. I would
however spend the $39.95 for Bodegas Caro’s cabernet/malbec blend Caro. No, I
am not stuttering. (BTW- if you repeat your typing what is that called?) This
wine comes from the JV of Barones de Rothschild (Lafite) and Nicolas Catena.
What a wine snob, I like the most expensive California style and the one with
50% cabernet sauvignon from the left bank.
Having said that, these 10 wines come from around the
Mendoza region and were arranged in two flights.
-
2006 Punto Final Reserva
- second favorite of the flight
-
2005 Poesia
Clos des Andes
-
2002 Poesia
-
2003 Poesia
-
2006 Bodegas Caro Caro
- my wine of the flight
-
2005 Cuvelier los Andes Grand
Vin
-
2005 Terrazas de los Andes
Cheval des Andes - first pour was corked
-
2006 Achaval Ferrer Mirador
-
2005 Cantena Zapata Argentino
2004 Vina Cobos Cobos- not knowing this was $165.00, I
found this wine to be a vision of soft, voluptuous and proportioned quality
similar to Bo Derek in the movie 10, except for the beaded hair,
that wouldn’t have been good. I found the Clos des Andres to be the Dudley
Moore of the night, club-footed and clumsy.
Next month we venture into the world of 1989 Bordeaux. I
may have to drink them nude just to allow all my senses to envelop the
etherealness of the heady bouquet that will be wafting through the room.
March 4, 2010
So what does a fallow vineyard yield? First, I had to go
to the dictionary and research the definition of the word 'fallow'. Second, the
reason I had to was that I received in the mail a bottle of 2009 Trefethen
Fallow. Third, I didn’t get the joke at first. It has been awhile since a
box arrived for Wino Bob addressed to WinoStuff.com. I am not sure how I got on
Trefethen Family Vineyards radar or mailing list. Even after I glanced at the
sell card contained in the package, I still was at a loss: Alcohol 0.0%,
Composition 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 1% argon and trace elements. What finally
registered was the side label that reads:
This is pure Trefethen fallow,
bottled to capture the very essence of Napa Valley; light, delicate, and
ethereal. The perfect match with April Fool’s dinner.
First off, I do not have an April Fool’s dinner, we do
lunch. I don’t drink at lunch, much. Second, why do they keep using words I
need to look up in the dictionary? I looked up the word ethereal and it says-
extremely delicate and light in a way that seems too perfect for this world.
Ergo Trefethen’s fallow is a light, delicate, extremely delicate and light
object. Either it’s crazy delicate or redundant. I guess I will find out when
I taste it.
Note to Trefethen, now that you have my address, feel free
to send a bottle of Halo, I will be happy to review it along with the Fallow.
fallow
1
|ˈfalō|
adjective
(of farmland) plowed and harrowed but left unsown for a period in order to
restore its fertility as part of a crop rotation or to avoid surplus
production.
February 27, 2010
"Neither rain, nor sleet, nor gloom of night will keep a
wino from his/her appointed rounds.” OK, its not the postman’s motto officially
either so I figure Mr. Franklin wouldn’t mind. Boy that guy was into
everything! He also said wine was good to cure the gout. Big
Bordeaux-head that Ben.
Lucky for me, the 8 hours of shoveling ended in time for me
to head up to the Tree Tavern. Fourteen other brave souls joined me and we were
treated to a variety of Indian cuisine. The down side of the bad weather was
that the belly-dancing instructor didn’t show up. Wino Rocker was so excited
about the possibility of belly dancing with an exotic woman of seven veils that
he shaved his back for the occasion. I understand Mrs. Wino Rocker now has a
nice throw rug for the TV room. We wanted to see what wines paired with the
fare so we picked three contenders. For opposites we served a 2007 Carl
Graff Riesling, for the complement we offered a 2007 Axis Zinfandel
and for wine lovers, a 2005 Stratton Lummis Cabernet Sauvignon.
I overloaded on the garlic naan with coriander chutney and
potato and pea samosas. I went right to the reds and delighted in the nose of
the Axis zinfandel. A winner of a wine for my taste. The wine showed a
blackberry and blueberry jamminess with a spicy-cedar and toffee finish. My
favorite was the 2005 Stratton Lummis cabernet. The wine had dark cherry, red
cherry and blackberry flavors with cassis, white pepper and floral notes. I
really liked this wine. Really, but than again, so did many others as this
wines was number 27 in the top 100 restaurant wines of 2008. I will have to pay
closer attention to the wine lists at some of the places I eat. I don’t recall
seeing this on many menus but across the nation, it is a winner.
The evening was topped off with Ras Malai for dessert and
the delight in knowing we didn’t have to look at Wino Rocker’s shaved back.
Don’t worry Wino Rocker, the back shaving was not wasted. Speedo season is
just around the corner.
Next month we will taste the treats of Middle eastern
food. Now where did I place my Macedonian wines?
February 23, 2010
Mike and I had the pleasure of drinking some of Tuck
Beckstoffer’s wines yesterday with their eastern regional manager, Estelle. The
2007 Victory Vineyards Parcel 31 zinfandel interested me not only for its
great value but for a zin, this wine is only 13.4 per cent alcohol. The heat
was off and the fruit comes out quickly. Light in the glass and with raspberry
and spice on the palate, this is an easy drink. I think we found a new everyday
drinking red.
The other wine we enjoyed was the 2007 The Sum.
This wine comes out of the Seventy-Five Wine Company’s portfolio and is a blend
of cabernet sauvignon, syrah, petite sirah and a host of supporting cast
grapes. Bold, black fruit and blueberry made this a lush wine in the glass. I
trust five years from now, this will be a wine that significantly increases in
price from this initial release. I’m buying some of this for my retirement
fund.
February 12, 2010
Hey, just a thought..., to the candidates that throw their
hats into the ring for President in 2012, it’s a hard job. Please don’t go into
it thinking that getting elected is the end of the process. And whining is
unbecoming. Did Roosevelt whine? Did FDR whine? Did Truman whine?
John F. Kennedy did not write Profiles in Whining.
Wino John and I had a bottle of Duckhorn’s Decoy last
night with dinner. We had to make some minor adjustments, which put us in a foul
mood. Yet we didn’t whine, we stood up to the challenge. It seems Penang
is doing some kind of work and they failed to call us and inform us not to stop
by. Fortunately, this is northern New Jersey and you could hit three other
restaurants from the doorstep of a restaurant. I figured their closure was due
to a broken pipe caused by the cold weather; Wino John clearly stated it was
George W. Bush’s fault that Penang was closed. Either way, we found the Indian
fare of Spice Grill just across the parking lot. I enjoyed a boatload of
naan and the lamb korman. At least I think it was lamb as this dish was offered
in the goat or lamb version. Both animals being tremendous resources for the
Indian culture, a source of clothing, a source of food and most important, a
source of romance when the wife is bitching. This was one time the food out did
the wine.
2007 Duckhorn Decoy Napa Valley Red Wine
$$ (25.99) 
This blend of 43% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43%
Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot makes it a BOTY and for that it
received an additional half point in my rating. Sadly, Wino John and I actually
left one third of the bottle for the staff at the Spice Grill. We had several
glasses over dinner hoping the wine would change (improve). No such luck.
February 10, 2010
I had some bidness to attend to at the Tree Tavern last
night. Of course, what starts out as serious discussions and market planning
morphs into 'market research' which is another phrase for 'heavy drinking'.
Mike is always on the lookout for great finds and last night I got to taste the
second product of the Scott Family Estate wines. The pinot we tasted last
Friday is a steal at $18.55 and the chardonnay we enjoyed last night is
delicious. The chardonnay is fat but not planked in oak, flavors of green
apple, butterscotch and pear tumble in the glass. The winery is under the
holdings of the Rutherford Wine Company.
Ultra -premium Pinot Noir and
Chardonnay are produced from family farmed Dijon clonal selections in the
prestigious Arroyo Seco appellation in Monterey County. Low yields result in
limited production wines, which exemplify the ideal matching of terroir and
varietal fruit.
I doff my derby to Mike for bringing these two wines from
Scott into his inventory.
February 6, 2010
I had the opportunity to sit in on a distributor tasting at
the Tree Tavern. Mike is on a quest to find those offbeat great value wines.
Two of them were interesting and I am sure will be finding their way into his
inventory.
I am not a big Pinot Noir guy as well documented, but the
nose on the 2006 Scott Family Arroyo Seco Dijon Clone...
The clones from Arroyo Seco
vineyards tend towards a rich fruitiness - Clone 667 - blackberry,
boysenberry; Clone 777 black and red cherries, hints of almond, violets and
pepper; and Clone115 - floral aromatics and bright acidity. To preserve the
lush fruit aromas and flavors, 10% of the lot was fermented via carbonic
maceration. These characteristics combined with the unique soil and climate
of the region give us a layered and complex wine with intense aromas and
fruit flavors including wild strawberry, dried herbs and lush vanilla with
smooth tannins and a long finish.
The second wine that caught my attention was the 2005
Stratton Lummis Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley. This wine comes from the
very heart of the Napa Valley. It is a blend of Oakville and Rutherford fruit.
In the glass you are treated to concentrated
perfume of cassis, violets and tobacco complimented by rich French oak. The
2005 artist series cabernet’s label is a piece by California artist Diane
Stevens.
Stay tuned for more on
these two wines.
February 5, 2010
Hey, what wine goes with groundhog stew? Might I suggest a
South African blend? OK, so I am bracing for the 8-12 inches of winter that
Punxsutawney Phil guaranteed after seeing his
shadow. Good thing I have enough wine in the basement to help me get through
the blizzard. Last night was….sorry, let me start again. I attended the Essex
County Wine Society’s tasting or murh..., merlomo..., mammalot…, merlot
tasting. Damn it, merlot! OK, merlot, merlot, merlot! To ensure I could get
through the tasting, I lubricated the pipes with a nice bottle of wine with a
dear friend at Fascino in Montclair. I enjoyed an appetizer of mushroom and
goat cheese stuffed ravioli in black truffle sauce and the grilled salmon.
Wowzer, my taste buds danced the happy dance. The wine was:
2002 Vergelegen
Vergelegen (no I’m not
stuttering). $$ (49.00)
 
This blend of 46% cabernet sauvignon,
29% merlot and 25% cabernet franc from the Stellenbosch region of South Africa
was nicely balanced with enough acidity to be food friendly, soft tannins for
the promise of it being able to drink well for awhile and the flush of
raspberry, dark cherry and plum with a hint of cassis. This one is above my
normal expenditure but the company and food deserved nothing less.
Then it was off to the
Montclair Woman’s Club building to meet the merlots. My arrival was just under
the wire and I missed the aperitif. That’s OK, I had my share of warm up wine
so I found a seat in the back and settled in for an education. The ten wines
were divided into three flights. The first four wines had three from Long
Island, NY and one from Bordeaux. Even to my novice palate, the Chateau
Gazin 2000 stood out because of the tannins and structure of the wine. The
Long Island wines were interesting but still not up to the quality of the
others. A side note, Chateau Gazin bumps up against the property of Chateau
Petrus. I had to say the Gazin had little in common with Petrus.
1. 2004 Paumonock
Merlot Grand Vintage
2. 2001 Lenz Merlot
Old Vines
3. 2000 Chateau
Gazin
- good but not worth the $88.00
4. 1993 Lenz Merlot
- the product was off
We then traveled to
Walla Walla Washington and tasted two from the great Northwest.
1. 2003 Northstar Merlot
2. 2005 Leonetti Cellars Merlot
- I found this to be nicely crafted, supple and
fruitful. It did contain 8% cabernet sauvignon and 7% petite verdot.
Onward and upward we
hit three California Merlots and an Australian. I found the Aussie wine quite
easily as it was sweeter, with fig and plum flavor. The hotter temperatures
and the red soil of Barossa Valley gave this one its distinctive flavor
profile. Or it was dumb luck; I chose the former. My tablemates just said I
was dumb.
1.
2005 Swithback Ridge Petersen Family Vineyards
Merlot
2.
2001 Haan Prestige Merlot
- my pick of the night though $55.00 is crazy.
3.
2004 Blankiet Estate Paradise Hill Merlot
4.
2005 Lewis Cellars Merlot - if the Aussie wine wasn’t in the
flight, I would have voted this my wine pick of the night.
So there you have it. I checked this morning and I still
have hair on my ass so I guess an occasional merlot won't make my boys turtle
into my abdomen.
January 30, 2010
Neither bluster nor dark of night shall keep a wino from a
wine event. Last night we held the inaugural Supper Series wine dinner at The
Tree Tavern. Thanks to the souls who braved the bitter night air to sit in the
warmth of a fire-lit dining room in Wanaque, New Jersey. The chill soon broke
as 21 strangers mingled over a selection of wine and cheese at the bar. As the
libations flowed, we moved to the tables and continued friendly conversation in
anticipation of the culinary offering from PartyConnictions chef, Julie. Our
hosts and proprietors of the Tree Tavern made the setting so comfortable that it
was more like having dinner at a friend’s house than being out at a restaurant.
The selected wines were reasonably priced and eclectically
offered. The warm up was a 2007 Alois Legeder Pinot Bianco. I must
confess, I have only had two Pinot Biancos prior to last night. The wine
offered a clean, crisp Granny Smith apple in the glass and finished brightly. I
guess you can teach an old dog new tricks. As for red wines, we switched
between the 2007 Yalumba Organic Merlot (yes I said merlot) and the
2005 Castello del Poggio Barbera d’Asti. Both being food friendly wines, I
enjoyed the bolder Barbera d’Asti with my dinner.
Julie pleased the palates of the crowd with a beautifully
prepared green salad with cranberries and walnuts. The main was chicken
Marabella, sided with wild rice pilaf and mixed vegetable. Dinner with topped
off with homemade crème brulee. I believe I cleared three of those by myself.
As the night wore down, and the group dwindled to the
stools at the bar, Big Bob entertained the crowd when he brought out an essence
kit. Ten of us stressed our olfactory senses with scents offered in the kit
that are contained in wines. Trust me, it ain’t easy; educational yes, but not
easy. As in most cases, it was Caroline’s immediate identification of the scent
of leather that stunned us. A vivid, long term memory experience made that a
very identifiable aroma to her. If only I stayed long enough to hear the story
behind that one.
We look forward to next month’s dinner. As the menu and
wine selection is developed, I will post it for the group. See you there.
January 24, 2010
I feel it creeping. Sorry, The Jersey Shore
characters have placed the words "creeper" and "creeping" into my head so now,
unless I use it, I can’t find different words. You know what I’m sayin'? I
have hit a saturation point in my French wine consumption that it has triggered
another French-pedantic affliction. I have officially started collecting art,
kind of. I will admit, I do not know much about art and artwork. I can see
something and know in my head that it interests me, but ask me why and I
couldn’t find a word to explain it. Maybe it just creeped me.
Recently I picked up a shipping tube at my PO box. In it
was an experimental first print of a Lyman Dally original oil painting. My
humble roots leaves me thinking a wine bottle Christmas tree and a signed Jackie
the Jokeman poster is art. Today I will be framing and hanging a signed, 1/1
experimental print of the painting below.

Eau d'vie,
Eau d'mort
When I saw this at the art show, I commented to Lyman that
I found this piece interesting, as wine is my elixir of life and probably the
liquid of my death. As I wish nothing but meteoric fame and fortune to Lyman,
this will one day be my first collector piece of artwork. Hey, which Forbes kid
is responsible for their collections? I’m thinking he and I are now peers. I
could also tell the Forbes guy that I have a bottle of 1996 Lafite with Thomas
Jefferson’s initials on it. Wow, one piece of artwork and I am rubbing elbows
with an entirely new stratum of people. The third floor room just got a bit
less dark and dank.
January 22, 2010
Sorry, I have to do some housekeeping. It’s not that I
haven’t had some wine lately. Mostly that I am still recovering. Recovering
from the shock of a Republican winning in Massachusetts. Keith Olbermann is in
complete meltdown. Air America officially shut their doors and the only
legislation that out-going New Jersey Governor John Corzine could pass on the
way out the door of Drumthwacket was to legalize medical marijuana. I think I
feel some glaucoma coming on.
As with global warming, the world is readjusting. By the
way, I am typing with fingerless gloves in my dark, damp and now cold third
floor room. The crazy thing is that the Democrats still have a 59-seat majority
but they are so disorganized that they can’t get their shit together to move
anything forward. But most shocking to me thus far is that pizza has gone the
way of the martini. I had my eyes opened last night when I went into Fortes and
looked over the pizza by the slice offerings. I guess it has been awhile since
I ordered a pizza. I was shocked that they make something called a 'chicken,
bacon and ranch pizza'. Is that pizza? Just as they are calling these
fruit-infused concoctions "martinis", pizza has now been bastardized in my
mind. I saw a cheese steak and a Caesar salad pie sitting there also.
Thank God we have the decency for the pedantic French view
of wine keeping most of the world’s offerings sane. Save NJ, with cranberry and
blueberry and any other produce-to-juice they think of, the rest is still,
simply wine. I guess I have to get out more. Dough, cheese and sauce seem to
be the minority in the world of pizza pie. Of course this shock sent me to
drinking, or rather finishing open bottles of wine that have been lingering on
my counter or in my refrigerator. Here are several I have enjoyed over the past
week or two.
2007 Notro Tinto de Montana - this Argentinean blend
of sangiovese and bonarda was cheap and drank so. I had higher hopes for this
wine but take my advice and pass on this one.
2005 Montevina Terra d’Oro Syrah - OK, but no
tingles up my leg on this one. It handles a Tuesday night in front of the TV,
but I would not bring this to dinner with friends. Enemies maybe, but not
friends.
2003 Callaghan Vineyards Syrah - A treat I brought
back from my last visit to Arizona, it was a pleasant surprise. Simple and not
too deep in complexity, it offers black fruits, spice and a hint of mocha. Give
the region 20 years and Arizona might be a place I will be drinking through.
2007 Tangley Oaks Rose Lot #3 - yes I said rose,
damn it. This rose is all Napa, at 14.1% alcohol. Sorry, not in my rose. Just
leave it on the skins and give it the color to make what I think you were going
for.
I must be getting old. That would have been four different
entries years ago. Now, like my prostate, things seem to dribble out from time
to time. Next month, back to basics.
January 21, 2010
Wow, is this month flying. Last night I stopped into the
Park Ave Club to check on a potential upcoming event I need to plan and ran into
the new Executive Director. He used to own my second home; Bacchus.
After asking for back rent for time spent in his wine cellar, we had a great
discussion about the exciting wines and events the club is planning. It turned
out that they have a tasting going on featuring some additions to their wine
menu. I crashed the party and was treated to the educational tasting notes of
Wendy Tate (sommelier) and Troy Titus (Beverage Director). The list follows:
-
NV Mirabelle Rose Sparkling
Wine - pleasant, bright red fruit
-
2005 Domaine Michel Caillot
Bourgogne “Les Herbeux”
-
2006 Hartford Court “Four
Heart” Chardonnay - wood prevails
-
2006 Joseph Drouhin
Chorey-Les-Beaunne - now maybe Big Bob will join me for dinner at
the club since they are pouring his wine.
-
2007 Byron Pinot Noir
-
2005 Silverado Merlot
- spicy and woody, it takes time to find the fruit
-
2003 Rust en Vrede Estate
- I love Stellenbosch but prefer the faithful Hound to this one.
-
2006 Stags Leap Wine Cellars “Artimis”
- the gem of the night, well crafted.
Hey, no grape of the year, what’s with that?
The club is growing in wine events and in their wine list.
It is nice to see new regions and a broader selection. Hey guys, I am available
for consult…. I can see it now, the club’s wine list being turned over to Wino
Bob. I accept the challenge. C'mon, Michael, if it wasn’t for my Bacchus
escapades you wouldn’t have that fat 401K. That’s my hard-earned cash.
January 9, 2010
I grabbed a glass of wine the other day with Bob. No,
not Big Bob, the other Bob. As this is the year of the blend, I picked a
2002 Origin Napa Valley Heritage Sites Red.
Well-played, Mr. Holmes, a somberly complex Bordeaux blend. This
merlot-heavy blend offers dark cherry, black currant and raspberries on the
first heady whiff. The more you swirl, the more that comes out, like eucalyptus
and herbs. The finish is soft tannins that give this one some more time to
bottle age. I really am liking the blends and it was a brilliant move on the
part of WinoStuff to name it this year’s grape of the year. For the record, the
winery does not belong to the Meritage association so it’s simply classified as
a "Bordeaux style blend". That is all right by me. The price came in at
$31.00, which is a bit more than I usually spend but hell, I’m worth it.
January 8, 2010
My 'entry number 9' problem was far different than Elliot
Spitzer’s 'client number 9' troubles but it still might put me in a heap of
trouble. Not salacious, sorry, I don’t have hooker money. My number 9 was a
hot, bold, seductive Aussie. Unfortunately, it was an outlier in a California
syrah tasting. OK, so during the Southern Rhone Chateauneuf du Pape tasting, I
select the California Rhone wine and in the California syrah tasting I pick the
Australian shiraz. This might be grounds for me turning in my gold plated
taste-vin to the society.
It turned out to be a fun night as we had a “professional
taster” at the table. I could tell by the way she concentrated on the bouquet
of each wine before tasting. Hell, I finished off all five of my first flight
wines before she tasted her first. Her note sheet was voluminous but the real
key was that she spit out the samples. Unlike the lush I am, knowing these
California syrahs offered from 13.9-16.3% alcohol, I was in it for the buzz.
Turns out we had a wine consultant/educator in our midst. Unfortunately, my
inane drunken comments had her looking for a different table mid tasting. She
tried to scoop up all ten glasses, the cheese plate and a water pitcher and
relocate, but the place was full.
Fully cocked, I forgot to take the final sheet but here is
what I do recall, to the best of my memory, so help me God.
Flight 1
Denner Vineyards 2006 Paso Robles
Neyers Old Lakeville Road 2007 Sonoma Coast
Ringer - it was a Northern Rhone but I didn’t
get the sheet
Copain “Tous Ensemble” 2007 Mendocino County -
my favorite of the flight
Ridge Lytton West 2005 Sonoma County - woody,
and minty.
Flight 2
Pride 2007 Napa County - well balanced and
ready.
La Sirena 2005 Napa Valley - The first
glass was corked, second pour had little nose and received zero votes -
unanimous. Surprising as this wine is overseen by Heidi Barrett, the first
lady of Napa wine (Screaming Eagle)
Ramey “Shanel Vineyards” 2006 Sonoma County -
nicely crafted
Mollydooker Blue-eyed Boy - my personal fav of
the night.
Alban Vineyards Reva 2005 San Luis Obispo County.
It turned out that the presenter for the night owns a
winery in Temecula, California, so I say to Lisa and Darcy, "there really are
only 2 degrees of separation." I look forward to an upcoming interview with the
winemaker at Monte de Oro Winery on 2degreesradio.
Next month, dare I say, we will be tasting merlot……I think
I feel a cold coming on.
January 2, 2010
It will take awhile to get the 2010 thing down. I hope you
had a happy, fun, safe celebration. I decided to spend the night with a bottle
of Meritage and the digitally remastered HD Three Stooges marathon. My
Cablinasian wine was the only way I see fit to ring in what I expect to be a
better year. If not, I will be bringing back the “Will Work for Wine” sign. So
I shot the last wad of 2009 on a beautiful bottle of the BOTY. I found $42.99 a
bit more than I normally spend but enjoyed the special treat. A 2006 Rodney
Strong Meritage Symmetry Alexander Valley.
Winemaker Notes - The 2006
Symmetry greets you with a generous bouquet of blackberries, ripe dark
plums, sweet spices, and a hint of chocolate. It opens boldly on the palate
with layers of blackberry, cassis, smoky dark chocolate and brown spice.
This mouth-filling wine is rich, silky in texture, expansive, and quite long
on the finish, and manages to be at once harmonious, powerful, and elegant.
Intended to be enjoyable on release, Symmetry is destined for years of
further evolution in the bottle. Savor it!
Stark at first, due to the 15.3% alcohol; then in a classy
move, this wine settles into a majestic display of chocolate and black fruits.
The finish was as interesting as the revealing of a satin garter and silk
stocking under a classy evening gown. Thank you, Rodney, for starting the year
with a solid entry into the pleasure of the grapes commingling in a Meritage
orgy. Happy FN ’10.
January 1, 2010
As I sit here this New Years Eve in my dark, dank third
floor hovel, I marvel at the fact that we are entering into the 10th
year of WinoStuff. I also marvel at the fact that ten years ago, my computer,
clock, microwave etc., didn’t blow up as double zeros in my computer’s brain
meant sure disaster. Ten years into the 21st century and my car
still doesn’t fly. Ten years into writing wine reviews and I am still banned in
most California wineries. Ten years of drinking wine for this site and my liver
still resides inside me. Could this be the year of the liver? Will David
Crosby take over for me? Will WinoStuff.com continue to blaze the trail for all
the other wine web sites on the internet?
As I do every year, I have thought long and hard about my
duty of naming the Grape of the Year. (Yes, I said duty and even while typing
it, I chuckle to myself). Besides, what else do I have to do sitting alone in a
third floor room as the frosty wind whistles through cracked window glazing?
Let’s say the year of the Petite Sirah went about as well as the first year of
the Obama administration. Hauntingly prophetic in that call. Yes, it has been
a long time since I have commented on the current affairs of this nation. How’s
that worked out? I think the White House would have benefited from our
criticism thus making their first year better and hence making our year better.
The year rode in on the promise of 'Hope and Change' when there will no longer
be red states and blue states but one purple country. As purple liquid is my
favorite color, I was optimistic. Unfortunately, polls show that we are more
divided as a nation now than a year ago. I only bring this up as background for
this year’s final decision.
I also was intrigued by Tiger Woods' disclosure this year.
A person that presented to the public a promise, an image, a barrier-breaker in
a sport where the ball was not the only white thing dominant at the Club. As we
end 2009, I can’t help but think about Tiger and Barrack. What could this mean
to 2010 and how could the GOTY be significant? So, I was thinking, Barrack and
Tiger both are products of a mixed racial genetic soup. Tiger had a penchant
for mixing with women of many ethnicities. Barrack transcended the politics of
a two party system making the left wing and right wing come together in a
harmonious voice of opposition. (OK, the last one is weak since he was more
polarizing than homogenizing but let’s be like the mass media and ignore the
facts and not dig too deeply when it comes to the President.) Then, in the
flash of genius synonymous with Hawking, Copernicus, and Carl Weinke (look him
up for yourself, I don’t have time to spoon feed you), there is only one
possible outcome for the 2010 Grape of The Year. Winos and Winettes, I proudly
declare 2010 the year of the:
BLEND
This year, we recognize the Cablinasian mix of grapes that
bring us delight from their harmonious compliments. At the recent Grape of the
Year Determination Luncheon, members of WinoStuff's Executive Subcommittee on
Grape Varietals and Viticulture presented numerous options for the actual blend
to be honored. We considered the blends of the Southern Rhone, the wines
that had me intrigued enough to cause me to study what wine is all about back as
a novice imbiber. We also considered the Super Tuscans and Australian GSMs but,
in the end, it was unanimous. We opted for the blend that has defined
premium wine for generations. This year's Blend of the Year is....
The Bordeaux-Style Blend
(aka Meritage)

The Bordeaux-Style blend or Meritage is typically a blend
of five different grape varietals; Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc,
Malbec and Petite Verdot. I offer the Bordeaux wines as the only thing
French, besides the kiss, that Wino John will open his mouth for. But most of
all, I call 2010’s GOTY, the BOTY for the beautifully crafted Meritage offerings
from the good ole USA. (Any of you homos call it "meritauge" or something else
French-sounding, I’ll kill you.) For the record, the word comes from 'merit'
and 'heritage'. As far as the country and the world, we all need a little more
mixing and blending instead of clashing and fragmenting. As the great orator
Rodney King once said to the vines, “Can’t we all just get along.”?
I have been a long time proponent of the blend. Each year
it offers consistency despite world climate change. Many times the sum is
greater than its parts. Hey, call Stephen Hawking; we may have just created
matter. Please hop on
www.meritage.org and see all the wineries that belong to the association.
We know that Bordeaux’s pedantic arcane rules define that entire region as a
blend.
Here is wishing that 2010 be a great year and that the
mixing of attitudes, ideologies, metaphors, races, sexual partners, and grapes
enhances your life in a way a segregated selection will not.
Bob's
old Winings were
starting to get as bloated as Bob's liver, so they were subdivided
chronologically into Quarterly Reviews. If you dare, click on one of the
links below to go back in time and revisit Bob's musings. Be warned
however, too much Bob can be hazardous to your psyche!
Q4 2009
Q3 2009
Q2 2009
Q1 2009
Q4 2008
Q3 2008
Q2 2008
Q1 2008
Q4 2007 Q3 2007 Q2 2007 Q1 2007
Q4 2006
Q3 2006
Q2 2006
Q1 2006
Q4 2005
Q3 2005
Q2
2005
Q1
2005
Q4
2004 Q3 2004
Q2 2004 Q1
2004
Q4
2003 Q3
2003 Q2
2003 Q1
2003
Q4
2002 Q3
2002 Q2
2002 Q1
2002
Q4
2001 Q3
2001 Q2 2001
Q1 2001
Q4 2000 Q3
2000 Q2 2000
Q1 2000
Bob’s scale combining cost and
taste:
$- under 20
dollars
$$- 20-50 dollars
$$$-50-75 dollars
$$$$-75 to 100
dollars
$$$$$-100+ ( not
in the budget)
I will use an icon, ,
to rate my wines. The more icons, the better I liked it and would love
to share this bottle with some good food and my rat friends. WinoBob
Editor's Note: A while back, Bob went off on a
tangent and changed his icon to .
He does this just to make me crazy!!!.
WinoJohn
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