Henri Bourgeois Sancerre - La Porte de Caillou 2007

I opened this wine for dinner yesterday. I found it refreshing with a honey overlay that was very interesting. It masked the citrus punch that seemed to be sitting just under the surface. The citrus elements wanted to burst through but were delayed by the heavier texture of the honey. There was a light lemonish flavor readily apparent with a foundation of other less distinguishable fruits. I caught something of peach and melon lurking in the background. The texture was light and crisp. It gave the clear impression of a firm body. It is a wine that is confident in itself. In addition the bouquet was highly aromatic and pleasing.

After dinner I replaced the cork and refrigerated the wine that was left. Opening it up today for lunch, Mary and I both found it overpowered by grapefruit and acid. It was crisp and pungent. It was reminiscent of the more upfront citrus varieties of New Zealand. However, we both missed the more subtle and muted tones of the night before. This is a fine wine worth the price of $20.00 plus.

Independance Day - 2009: American Wines Galore

The Issue

It's the Fourth of July, Independence Day, 2009. The 233rd anniversary of the founding of the Republic. Realizing we were going to be entertaining some of our oldest and dearest friends for the 4th, I ruminated about what wine selection would fit the occasion. The answer was simple, American wines! Since we were going to be doing some traditional grilling, I tried to pair wines that would go well with this style of cooking. I came up with a few wines that seemed to be perfect to augment our 4th of July Celebration. I went with two whites and two reds. The menu for the day contained both red meat(flank steak and hamburgers)and white meat (chicken, and turkey burgers) with asparagus, corn on the cob and potato salad. For appetizers we chose two cheeses, an Italian sweet Garganzola and a Spanish Monchego. Black olives and chips for dip rounded out the preliminaries. I would have to work with both red and white wines to give my guests some good pairing opportunities.

The Guest List

Our guest list was pretty full with some very discerning palates. The Brown's were coming from Brooklyn. The Ciaccio's from Douglaston, our son Dave, his fiance, Angela, coming from Astoria, our son Chris stopping in for a few mintues after working at Equinox Fitness Center, and our nephew Mike from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Alden Brown and Ed Ciaccio are rather experienced wine tasters, as well as aficionados of other adult beverages. If you know what I mean.

The Wines

I chose a La Crema 2007 Chardonnay for the appetizers. It was not my first choice. I had hoped to use a Cuvaison but the local wine shop did not have it in stock. La Crema is a fine Chardonnay from the Russian Valley with tropical fruits, good body, a toasty oak finish, full nose, and a soft texture. When I first tasted it I was taken by the oak and toasty flavor. To be honest, it was a tad too heavy for what I had hoped for. The oak was too strong for the appetizers or just didn't seem to fit perfectly with the sweet garganzola. Unfortunately, everyone else had opted to indulge in gin and tonics so I have no basis of comparison. I should have taken the hint when I alone went with the Chardonnay. Perhaps a nice Sauvignon Blanc would have been better. An Oyster Bay SB might have worked.

For the main meal I opened a 2005 Estancia Meritage which is a bourdieu blend of Cabernet, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot. Alden looked up from his plate of flank steak and potato salad and said "This is excellent." His eyes told a story of real enjoyment. Mary concurred. She commented that it was superb with a great bouquet and smooth texture. A success!

The final wine which I had paired with the chicken and other dishes, such as the very light and heavenly potato salad and the asparagus in olive oil and lemon was a 2007 Eroica Riesling from the Columbia Valley estate of Chateau Ste. Michelle. I had never indulged in this wine. But the reviews were very positive. I had hoped the Riesling would be dry enough to be appropriate for the main meal. Maureen Brown thought simply: "It's too sweet for me." Mary thought it wasn't overly sweet but quite fine. I suspected this was a spouse coming to the rescue of a sinking husband. As for myself I thought it was quite good and paired well with the food although there was a sweetness to the wine. I would have preferred greater dryness.

All in all the wines were good as was the great camaraderie and good feelings. I would say the Estancia Meritage was the best fit. It superbly complemented the flank steak and burgers with just the right amount of body and an immense complexity, with hints of choclolate and spice. The Ciaccio's generously drove the Brown's to the LIRR for their trip back to Brooklyn. It was a charming and wonderful day with friends.

The Spanish Quarter - Chardonnay, Albarino and the Human Tower

Mary and I had the opportunity to visit friends out in West Islip Long Island this past Sunday. The day was one of only a few sunny warm days in the past month. June in New York has been wet and soggy almost every day. To celebrate the occasion, we brought a bottle of The Spanish Quarter, 2006, an exciting blend of Chardonnay (60%) and Albarino (40%) grapes. Upon arriving at the Tully's very comfortable and inviting home, Rich Tully asked my preference for serving the wine. Since we had also brought Mary's home-made clam dip I decided that The Spanish Quarter would go perfectly with the seafood. Rich served it enthusiastically out on the deck with the dip for all the guests to enjoy. At first sip Marina Trentacoste uttered "This is very good." I knew immediately we had a winner.

The wine was an interesting straw color, very vibrant and inviting. The nose had hints of citrus, with upfront fruit in the modern manner, and an overlay of peach, and possibly apricot and apple; very aromatic. It was crisp and refreshing. The finish was long and enjoyable, no bitterness but with a sharpness that lingered. The blend of Chardonnay muted some of the Albarino's traditional cutting quality. The bottle was finished in a flash. It was superb with the clams. I'm sure it would go with all seafood dishes. We had not experienced a blend of Chardonnay and Albarino. The Albarino grape is one of the most popular white wines in Spain. According to Gail Wallis of Suite 101:

"The albarino grape originates in Galicia, misty land of the ancient Celts. Located in the lushly green and hilly northwest corner of Spain, Galicia is a land heavily reliant on the fishing industry. The climate here is greatly influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, with wet and chilly winters, dry summers, and high humidity—perfect conditions for growing certain white grape varieties, such as Albarino. The grape also grows a bit farther south, in Portugal, where it is known as "alvarinho."

One of the added pluses to the enjoyment of the wine was the label. Mary explained to our friends that it is a hand painted rendition of an ancient Spanish tradition, the building of human pyramids. This takes place each year at the The Fiesta de La Virgen de La Salud (The Feast of the Virgin of Health) at the beginning of September in the town of Algemesi. Acrobats from all over Spain descend on the town and create human towers. The tradition started in late 18th century Catalonia and spread south. My wife tells me a part of this tradition was to have a small child be the very top of the pyramid. I could certainly see a nice bottle of The Spanish Quarter being enjoyed at such a spectacle. You can read about the pyramids in Graham Smith's article. I took the photo I posted here from that piece. It's truly amazing.

The Spanish Quarter also comes in a red variety which is a blend of Cabernet and Tempranillo.

Our visit to the Tully's reached it's crecendo with Idamarie's luscious pork dinner served with carrots, squash and other delicious morsels. Dinner was topped off with some amazing desserts compliments of our friends Sal and Marina Trentacoste and Kathy and Bill Carriero. It was an enjoyable day, with good friends and fine wine and food.

Claremont Vineyards: A Little Bit of Portugal in New York State

A few years ago my wife received a letter from an old friend, Louise Trigo. Louise and Mary stay in touch during holidays. Mary and Louise had known each other when they both participated in the shows sponsored by the Brooklyn Portuguese Club. To our surprise, Louise mentioned that she and her husband Tony had purchased some land upstate with the desire to start a vineyard. We thought, well, God bless them. With our interest in wine we hoped they would do well. Louise recently wrote and said they were harvesting and bottling. Ah, but the best was yet to come. Yesterday, we received an email linking us to Carlo Di Vito's wine blog: Hudson River Valley Wineries. Lo and behold it contained a very flattering and extensive post on the Trigo's winery in Claremont, New York. Kudos!

According to Carlo Di Vito, Tony Trigo is a very enthusiastic wine maker. His vineyard has produced excellent Seyval Blanc and Sangiovese. You can see Tony and Louise harvesting last fall on YouTube.

We wish the Trigos all the luck in the world with their fantastic adventure. I wonder if they have free delivery?

Bob

A Slovenian Riesling

When planning a trip to the Balkans last fall, I anticipated tasting some new wines and possibly purchasing one or two bottles not easily found in the US, perhaps a red wine from Croatia and a white from Slovenia. The Croatian red wines I tasted, particularly those from the islands along the Dalmatian coast were quite good. However, prices in shops in Dubrovnik, where we spent much of our time in Croatia, were fairly steep. The wine-growing area near the city of Mostar in Bosnia-Hercegovina also had a good reputation. This city is well worth a visit but the single wine I tasted though fragrant was quite light and unexceptional.

So, with only a single day remaining on our vacation, we found ourselves on a city tour of Ljubljana with no wine in our luggage. During the tour I noticed a wine shop only a few minutes walk from Congress Square. When the tour was completed we dashed back to the shop. If the old Sherry-Lehmann (on Madison Avenue) were in Ljubljana instead of New York City, I imagine that it might look very much like this shop, Vinoteka Dvor. The sole salesman, who had a polite and precise manner that seemed typically "old world," asked me what I was seeking. Since I am a Riesling fancier who knows that Slovenia is reputed to make some fine wines from this varietal, it is easy to infer my response. The problem is that Slovenian wine includes two sorts of Riesling, Laski and Renski, of which only the latter is the grape that makes famous wines in Alsace, Germany, Austria, etc. Despite the large number of Slovenian wines and those from other countries in the shop, the salesman said that he only had two Renski Rieslings for sale, a dry wine from the Gaube winery and an off dry wine from Klet Bistrica. As my wife looked on, I said that I would take a bottle of each wine. Prices were so reasonable that I fear I would have brought back a bottle of every single Renski Riesling in the shop, no matter how many different wines were in stock.

A few days ago we invited four of our neighbors for dinner and served the 2007 Gaube wine with appetizers. Gaube is a fairly small producer who cultivates 20 acres in the town of Zgorna Kungota in northeastern Slovenia. First impressions of the wine were not auspicious. The bouquet seemed mute, lacking the various floral and fruit smells I associate with German or Alsatian Riesling. The acidity of the first sip or two was more noticeable than any flavor. But soon thereafter, the wine's fruit developed and it began to show a strong presence on the palate. It also had a lovely dry finish. The wine reminded me of some appealing Austrian Rieslings I've tasted. Although I had given our company warning that Slovenian wine was new territory for me and I wasn't sure exactly what to expect, everyone was pleased with the Gaube wine. Needless to say, the 2005 Klet Bistrica Riesling is likely to be consumed soon.

Eric

St. Supery 2007 Sauvignon Blanc: A Show Stopper

Sitting down to dinner the other night brought an exciting surprise. As a part of our nightly anitpasto we were indulging in an imported basil pesto and crackers. Imported from Italy, the pesto is intense, rich and succulent, just right after a long day of dehydrating work. As pleasant as the pesto was it was not the surprise. I opened a 2007 St. Supery Sauvignon Blanc as an accompaniment to our pesto. Mary and I have had St. Supery many times before and had some good experiences along with some fair to middling ones. This time was very different. Sauvignon Blancs usually have citrus, lime and herbal notes. Sometimes the grapfruit is very forward and intense. On this occassion, the grapefruit was there, indeed. What was surprising to us was the intense and totally forward pineapple flavors. It hit like a meteor strike. The pineapple exploded on the tongue and held on for what seemed like minutes. Pow! What excitement. Visions of pineapples from Central America danced in my head. After a time the grapefruit, lime, and green apple notes mixed in with a gentle acidity. The finish was long and zesty. I was reminded of the New Zealand SBs, especially as they were before growers started to dumb down the edginess that brought them to fame.

In reading reviews of the 2007 St. Supery I was struck by the minor role the pinapple flavors played. In fact, some reviewers did not mention pineapple at all. I suggest you give this wine and vintage a try. Let me know what you experience. It's worth the time and effort. You can pick up a bottle for about $20.00.

It's not every weekday night before dinner that such a zingy surprise occurs.

You can learn more about the superb wines produced at St. Supery by going to their equally superb website.

A Winter Dinner with Friends: Falanghina and Cabernet

One of the great joys of winter is sitting down with good friends in a warm and cozy house. Last week we had just such a day when our dearest friends Alden and Maureen came from Brooklyn to be with us. We hadn't seen them in some months so just the thought of seeing them again brought joy to us. Mary planned one of Alden's favorite foods: brisket of beef with some hearty vegetables. The brisket was so big we had to cut it in half and use two pots on top of the stove to prepare them. Mary used carrots, string beams, onions and potatoes to accompany the brisket.

Before dinner, however, we indulged in some antipasto. We offered an Italian blue cheese, a French brie with an accompanying shrimp cocktail. Mary made the cocktail sauce herself. It was mild but excellent. The horseradish was just right for my taste. For the pre-dinner selection I picked a well touted white Italian 2007 Terredora Dipaolo Falanghina. None of us had ever tasted a Falanghina. I'm glad we did. Falanghina is grown in the Campania region of Italy, just north or Naples. It is a savory, very well balanced wine. The color is an amazing yellow unlike most I have seen. The nose was fruity and refreshing. On first taste Mary and I sensed a minerality that was seductive and exciting. I thought it was hinting at green apples though Mary sensed pear. It was perfect with the shrimp and I would say the Falanghina would be wonderful with fish dishes in general.

Dinner was equally interesting. Alden brought a bottle of Cellar No. 8 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon from the Asti Winery in Sonoma California. Alden mentioned that it was, I think, under $10.00 a bottle. Cellar No. 8 has a real history to it in the annals of Oliva/Brown wine tasting. Some years ago I found a bottle of Cellar No. 8 Zinfandel at the Stewart Spirits Wine Shop in Floral Park (now defunct). I was unsuccessful in finding another bottle until Alden came across it in Carrol Gardens, Brooklyn. For the price, it is a fine, well bred wine. The nose was a bit muted but the color was full and almost grape juice looking. The upfront flavor was not strong but it was full and well balanced with a strong spice to the finish. The wine possessed a plum or dark cherry flavor. I had hoped for a tad more strength and complexity but it was very pleasing and went perfectly with the brisket of beef. Which, by the way, was superb. Mary cooked it until it nearly melted at first taste.

The day was very successful. We enjoyed seeing our friends once again both human and varietal.

Bob