The Inquiring Vine

It’s time once again for another edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday, with our host this month David at 2 Days per Bottle, and this one was a real doozie. We’re paying tribute to a man who needs no introduction, or rather we’re raising a glass to the end of George Bush’s era. We all recognize this, I guess, gentleman for many things, most notably for two things, the global war on terror, and for bringing us great entertainment with his memorable quotes. And I think this month just shows us one of the great things we have here on the internets, the great way we can all come together for some light-hearted fun.

It took me a while to decide on the wine for this month, since the possibilities were endless. Let’s be honest, no one word could describe ol’ Georgie’s colorful administration, can it? So I decided on several wines. I’m throwing a little twofer with Shiraz, which is not only the Aussie version of the grape but also the name of a city in Iran. But as a twist, since once upon a time George had a little trouble telling the difference between Australia and Austria, I grabbed a bottle of Gruner Veltliner. I originally wanted to taste a Georgian wine, what with the recent brouhaha with Russian over the Georgian Republic, but the bottle turned out to be corked. That’s the second bad bottle of wine from that Russian deli. They fooled me once, shame on them. Looks like I got fooled again. Too bad the word “corked” was never a word covered in my Russian classes.

Cuban wine would have been an appropriate treat, too, but Vinos Fantinel would probably be pretty tough to get my hands on. Still, I think I bought some good selections. And the Aussie Shotfire’s rendition of Shiraz is pretty extraordinary, I might add.

So here’s the line-up: Shotfire Shiraz and Anton Bauer Gruner Veltliner. And if you’re curious, the Georgian wine would have been Alazinis Veli from the Kakheti region, a blend of Alexandrouli, Mudjuretuli, Saperavi, and Ojaleshi. Quite a mouthful, eh? The Shotfire is a spectacular wine from the Barossa with a dark red color that’s incredible. It has this beautiful shade of crimson that all red wine lovers could appreciate.

Anton Bauer’s Gruner Veltliner has mineral aromas and fresh green apple. The palate is full of crisp acidity and green apple. GV is something I drink a lot of, but I do like it as a substitute for Sauvignon Blanc.

Cheers

Tags: George Bush

As part of a basic-level information technology class required of all college students at GMU, I’ve been working on this project focusing on trends in info technologies. And of course I find a way to focus this toward wine in some skewed fashion: how has wine blogging technology had an impact on the wine industry? Sounds easy enough, right?
As I’m pulling in different articles and facts I find an interesting article by Rob Crumpler, written in March, about how media “Goliaths” and blogging “Davids” can work together. His bottom line is that that the media giants can bring more ad dollars by incorporating blogs into their news sites, as we’ve seen with USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post to name a few.
Would this work for wine media producers such as Wine Spectator and Decanter? I don’t think so, at least not any time soon. Crumpler writes ,“the voices of online influencers who have demonstrated credibility and expertise” as well as “both professional headlines and independent commentary give consumers multiple viewpoints around a specific theme or topic.” I agree with that, in principle, but I believe big wine media sees bloggers as either threats or underlings. Admittedly that’s a generalization, but given the recent hullabaloo over James Molesworth’s forum comment that bloggers are lazy, there’s clearly a divide between print media and the blogosphere. I don’t think Crumpler’s dynamic will apply to wine for a while.

And as a shameless plug, if you’re a wine blogger, I’d be much obliged if you could take a minute and fill out my wine blogger survey. It started out as a simple survey for the paper, but Joel Vincent has shown interest in using the results in some fashion for the wine blogging conference in October.

Tags: Blogging & print media, James Molesworth, Rob Crumpler

It’s harvest time now on the west coast, at least with Pinot Noir, and you can follow along on a new blog. I’ve happened across an interesting new blog created by a number of winemakers and winegrowers, pinotharvest.com. Several of them have already written blogs during past harvests, but this year 16 of them have banded together to write daily on the trials and tribulations known as the harvest.

Beside the expected continuous checking for the right moment topick followed by the long hours, harvest also entails having to deal with problematic trucking companies and maintaining cellar equipment. And beyond the chronicles of the harvest, they write about the things winegrowers look for before picking (Peter Cargasacchi: Do Seeds Wriggle?) or discuss their thoughts on the politics of pinot (Wes Hagen: Where Does Pinot Belong?).
Why not click on over and take a gander their blog.

Tags: California harvest, PinotHarvest.com

It has been four years now that Lenn, of Lenndevours, and guest hosts have asked bloggers to explore everywhere from the shelves of the favorite stores to the far reaches of the earth for wines, popular and obscure alike.  I’ve only participated in three Wednesdays so far, starting only last year, but judging from the line-up of topics, bloggers have covered a lot of exciting topics.  To mark the anniversary Lenn has asked us all to reach back to our roots and select a wine from our early days of wine drinking, or to select that incredible wine that once upon a time stopped us in our tracks.

I can’t pinpoint the definitive wine that made me first take notice of wine, though I can think of many contenders.  I spent many of my early wine days at a local wine store, The Wine Cellar, where I grew up.  I slowly grew to love the way a red wine looked when I held the glass up to the light and swirled the wine around.  I tasted many that I loved and of course some that I didn’t care much for.  Back then, when I didn’t know much about wine, but I drank what was affordable.  So I thought I’d have some fun and revisit a blue bottle that was usual companion in those early wine days.  Admittedly Schmitt Sohne will never be mistaken for a stellar wine, and it won’t be seen among the classic wines, but hell, that wasn’t a consideration for me or my friends.  And most of all, it was affordable.

I was a little skeptical about using this wine for this post, but it’s all in good fun, and perfectly in the spirit of the theme.  Hey, I could have gone for MD 20/20, but I think one sip would bring up flashbacks of massive hangovers and the hell I put myself through to get those hangovers.  Here’s a little drinking survival tip: when you’ve had enough vodka that luke-warm grape mad dog tastes good, it might be time to stop.

I drank a fair amount of the Schmitt, so much that once my tastes started to change, I thought it was too sweet.  Unfortunately, after that I thought I didn’t like Riesling or German wine in general.  Thankfully I’ve since seen the light and put those steely, acidic yet fruity Rieslings among my favorites.  With that in mind, I figured I’d wander down amnesia lane, give the ol’ Schmitt a whirl, and see how it compares to Rieslings I have had in the past year or so.

I found a full line-up of Schmitt Sohne at none other than Total Wine.  I honestly don’t recall whether it was Kabinett or Auslese that I used to drink, but it’s a sure bet it wasn’t the Liebfraumilch.  Back then deciphering labels and picking out things like Qualitatswein was not on the agenda.  Knowing what I know now, I figured the least I could do was to go for the slightly higher quality Auslese.

Schmitt Sohne Riesling Auslese 2005
What was truly interesting about this wine was the bottle itself.  The back label had a description of the wine that proved how subjective tastes can be, or how far they will go to sell a wine.  According to the label, this is a full-bodied wine with intense flavor.  Granted, intense flavor is relative.  Give a group of people some jalapenos, and you’ll see the difference in reactions.  But full-bodied?  No 3year old, 8% alc Riesling for $8 is going to be full-bodied.

This Riesling has the tell-tale scent of that oh-so-lovely essence of rubber boot, though the wine was not intensely aromatic.  Swirl it around a bit and up come hints of apricot and lemon.  As far as wines go from Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, this doesn’t have much acidity at all.  It delivers a little peach, some quince, and some occasional minerality.  It’s light-bodied what most would call an “easy drinking wine.”  I wouldn’t want to drink a lot of it, but it was pleasant.  It’s just not exactly my style:  I like more acidity, more along the lines of Sancerre or New Zealand Sauvingon Blanc.

Well, those are some of my wine roots.  Wander over to Lenn’s next week for the wrap-up, or until then meander through the other blogs and take a tour of their memory lanes.
Cheers!

Tags: Lenndevours, Schmitt Sohne

The other afternoon, I chilled out with an unoaked Chardonnay from Santa Barbara. It was a bit warm, but a crisp white always seems to hit the spot, or even a rose, but I don’t drink a lot of those.

Four Vines Naked Chardonnay 2006
On the nose I found green apple, a touch of white peach, and the occasional floral note. A few times I picked up a little orange or some citrus. After tasting a touch of pineapple, I noticed that aroma as well. The color is medium lemon with some green tints.
The acidity is medium as is the body. Upon sipping this tasty beverage, I got bits of white peach, citrus, and apple. I thought I noticed some of that softness you get from malolactic fermentation, but according to their website, the wine didn’t get any malo, no surprise being an unoaked wine. Maybe the softness was from the peach flavors.

No pairing notes with this one. This was nice afternoon sipper all by itself–a naked wine, stripped not only of oak but of any foods.

The folks at Four Vines look pretty laid back. Their website is a nice break from the polished, corporate sites with gobs of Flash.

Tags: Four Vines Naked Chardonnay

We just had a tasty tasty Aussie Grenache tonight with dinner—the Trevor Jones Boots Grenache 2006.

When you look at it, you’ll know this was made in a style typical of New World wines. Grenache, along with Pinot Noir and Gamay, is known for being clear enough sometimes that you can see through the wine, at least in French wines. But this little gem has rather dark ruby hue. The aromas are quite nice but not all that strong. It has dark fruit—a little cherry and a little blackberry (unusual for Grenache)— and a bit of chocolate now and again. At times I was able to pick up some of the oak. What stands out is the alcohol. Its 14.5% alcohol makes itself known; but the wine is balanced enough that the alcohol doesn’t singe your nose hairs. Still, you’ll know that alcohol is in there. Unfortunately, these higher alcohol wines don’t always pair well with a lot of foods, but more on that in a moment.

The palate has dark fruit, and a healthy dose of tannins. I noticed a bit of wild brambly-ness, but not like a cheap wine where they probably threw too many of the stems in to get extra tannins. It’s a wild, brambly flavor that complements the dark fruit flavors. It has a medium amount of acidity. The finish lingers on for a little bit. All in all, it’s a bold, fruity, fairly tannic wine.

And though it was tannic, it to the point that it conflicted with salmon. We decided to do a little twist on crab cakes and made them from salmon instead. Pair something like this with a Cabernet or Malbec and that would just be asking for trouble, but the Grenache was fine—none of that metallic flavor that pops up with oily fish and tannic wines. Then again there was more to the salmon cakes than there would be if, say, you grilled or sauted a salmon filet by itself. However, I would probably pair this wine with a richer piece of meat next time, something like beef or game—something that could compete with the alcohol.

Tags: Trevor Jones

Here’s the new and improved blog. I’ve given myself an interesting crash course in Wordpress, but I’m happy with my humble little blog here.

I hope you like it. Cheers!

Last year Natalie MacLean’s book, Red, White, and Drunk All Over came out in paperback. If you haven’t seen the book, you may have visited her website or read her monthly newsletter, “Nat Decants.” She has received many well-deserved accolades for her writing. As the bio on her website puts it, she funds her late-night vinous habits with a day job as a wine writer, judge, and speaker. Natalie’s book is without a doubt a pleasure to read. She writes as someone with authority while also revealing her witty and light-hearted personality. She’s funny at times, so much that one writer called her “laugh out loud funny,” a term that struck me as being geared for advertising; but, I assure you I was laughing a lot through this book. Her writing is also very vivid, even sensual at times.

Natalie starts the reader’s journey with a peek at her first moving experience with wine at a restaurant she and her husband, Andrew, frequented early on in their relationship. The wine was a Brunello, a Tuscan delight that was so delicious that she was not merely impressed, but felt almost physically moved, feeling a flush of warmth running through her entire body. This wine encounter was so intense that it launched her lifelong on a journey of discovery with wine. As the second part of the book’s title hints, A Wine-Soaked Journey from Grape to Glass, we follow her along segments of this wine journey, and get to vicariously enjoy astounding wines in Burgundy, Champagne, and California, as well as catch a glimpse of the unique people who make those wines. We also learn that Natalie is very much a good sport and not afraid to get dirty. She immerses herself in the process of winemaking by working under the searing sun in the vineyards of central California, and following an Aussie vintner high and low through the cellars of Bonny Doon, in Santa Cruz, Ca.

When she’s not tasting Burgundy wines with the introspective Aubert de Villaine and the fiery Lalou Bize-Leory, or learning about the wine world according to the philosophic Randall Grahm, Natalie tackles the sticky subject of wine scores, a vinous minefield indeed. The wine industry has few topics as controversial as Robert Parker and wine scores. Sharing that dubious honor might be James Laube and his crusade against cork, or the ever increasing level of alcohol of New World, blockbuster, powerhouse, hedonistic wines, which, I personally enjoy as equally as a bottle of 6% alc Moscato d’Asti. She compares and contrasts the approaches of Jancis Robinson and Robert Parker, and also discusses the effect of wine scores from the numerous wine writers and critics. We also read her take on the effect that is so endearingly referred to as the Parkerization of wine—the tailoring of wine in hopes of garnering the high scores.

Also along the wine journey we follow Natalie going under cover as a sommelier, learn the story behind Riedel, and read the about the ins and outs of retail wine. Many readers will be able to relate to Natalie as she invites us into her home as she prepares for entertaining guests on Thanksgiving. We learn about all the considerations with selecting and serving wines to go with the vast array of flavors that can be involved when having friends and family over for dinner. In that chapter, as well as another dedicated to combing food and wine, she shares the secrets of food pairing. At the heart of her guidelines of taking into consideration such things as tannins and acid in the wine, or the richness of a food, is her encouragement that wine drinkers truly do know more than they realize: the reader should trust his or her taste and not worry about the old axiom of red wine with red meat and white wine with poultry and fish. It’s perfectly acceptable to stuff those old rules into the trash bin, except maybe for such things as tannic reds with salmon.

All in all, Red, White, and Drunk All Over is a very enjoyable read. As a wine blogger and writer I can certainly relate to her when she says writing about wine allows her to extend her hedonism and gives it a “sharper, more satisfying edge.” After having read her book, I bet she’d be a lot of fun to share a bottle of wine with. She is passionate about wine and loves talking with people who are equally passionate about wine as she is.

It has been four years now that Lenn and guest hosts have asked bloggers to explore everywhere from the shelves of the favorite stores to the far reaches of the earth for wines, popular and obscure alike. I’ve only participated in three Wednesdays, starting only last year, but judging from the line-up of topics, bloggers have covered a lot of exciting topics. Pairing wines with chocolates certainly looked fun. Having read quite a few bloggers, I think most of are always willing to try something outside the norm; so obscure reds, local wines, and indigenous grapes brought out a lot of variety from everyone. And we’re never hesitant to have a little fun either, like borrowing from a TV show most of us here in the U.S. watched as kids.

Lenn didn’t ask us to reach so far back into our pasts for the August theme. We only go back to our early days with wine, to our drinking roots. Here’s a link to Lenn’s announcement.

I’m going to forgo the Gallo jug wine my parents drank, and I’ll bypass Amnesia Lane, a route lined with such nefarious characters as Boone’s Farm or MD 20/20 (second to the worst hangover, ever). We’re celebrating four years of all blogging together, which I think calls for a little bubbly. I don’t recall the names of most of the wines I had when I first started going to tasting, but I do think I remember some from my first Champagne and sparkling tasting. And for a little fun, I might revisit one inexpensive Riesling I had a fair amount of when I was stationed in Colorado: Schmitt Sohne. I haven’t had that since the late 1990s, but I seem to remember eventually thinking it was too sweet. And for a long time after that, I didn’t think I liked Riesling; but that’s since changed.

Mark your calendars. Stop by some of your favorite wine blogs on 13 August as we visit ghosts of wines past.

I just love wine gadget catalogs! They are always filled with nifty toys, furniture, and storage systems that I’m probably not going to buy because, well, I have plenty of corkscrews–wait that’s not possible–no basement, and very little storage space. But, oh my, aren’t those vintage oak hanging racks and EuroCaves pretty? It’s like porn for gadget fiends and wine geeks.

Honestly I’d love to build a cellar or sport some oak barrel tables. The instant wine chiller sounds like an awesome time saver. No need to wait for a bottle to cool off in the fridge or the freezer. But, the Clef Du Vin is a bit dubious if you ask me. Yeah, stick a piece of metal in a glass and the wine tastes 10 years old.

But what about those unfinished bottles? All our problems are solved! Is it a vacuum pump? Is it a wine cooler? Nope, it’s both. It’s the EuroCave SoWine Bar. I’m not sure how long this puppy has been around, but it’s the first time I’ve seen it. Apparently you can keep to bottles in separate temperature-controlled compartments for up to ten days. But the catch is it costs 400 bucks! For two bottles? For my money I’d rather go with Private Reserve inert gas or the Vacu Vin and pop the bottle in a 30-bottle wine refrigerator that costs about the same amount. Those vacuum stoppers last about 10 years, shorter if you have cats who love to make toys out of anything that rolls. Here’s the best bit. The picture shows a bottle of Gallo Sonoma inside SoWine. Would the average Gallo drinker pay $400 to store two bottles? And besides, who keeps an opened bottle for 10 days?! Well, besides port and sherry perhaps.