The wine certainly did not disappoint. This is definitely not a wine for those looking for a lighter styled, sub-13% alcohol, elegantly crafted pinot noir. This pinot noir was THAT type of pinot that would cause some to ask – “Is there any syrah in this?” And while the color would lead you to believe there would be, the flavor of the wine still had the pinot-nicity character you’d expect in a 100% bottled pinot noir. This wine was intensely flavored, mouth-filling, deeply layered, deeply nuanced and downright delicious. There was also exoticness in the flavor that mirrored the exotic character of the North African spiced lamb on the table.

If Thackrey’s other wines are as singular and exciting as this one, I will certainly seek them out. If you’re looking for a truly unique and exciting wine, you should do yourself a favor and buy some of his wines.

Here's a picture of a bottle we drank last year that I wish we had another bottle of. Arrrgh!

]]> http://thegrapecrusader.wordpress.com/2010/09/26/im-back/feed/ 2 vino808guy IMG_1547 http://thegrapecrusader.wordpress.com/2009/09/22/the-grape-crusader-has-moved/ http://thegrapecrusader.wordpress.com/2009/09/22/the-grape-crusader-has-moved/#comments Tue, 22 Sep 2009 05:51:19 +0000 vino808guy http://thegrapecrusader.wordpress.com/?p=2758 ]]> We apologize for not being more consistent with the posting of our wine reviews in the past month or so.  I’ve been busy juggling my search for a day job while also making changes to my night job by setting up a new home base for this blog.

With that, here is the new url and web address for The Grape Crusader blog.

www.grapecrusaderblog.com/Home

You’ll see a few aesthetic changes to the blog, but not much, for now at least.  The biggest change and the main reason why I’ve switched to a different platform is that our new home now allows us to place advertisements on the blog.  The blog is definitely a labor of love and a hobby for us, and all we expect from any advertising revenue we receive are resources to support our..ahem..sipping habits, which in turn provide you, our loyal readers with these independent wine reviews.

We’ll be doing our best to minimize the advertising clutter so the content, not the ads are what stand out on the front page.

I do hope you continue to read and enjoy the wine reviews and we appreciate your continued visits to the The Grape Crusader blog.

Bottling: 2006 Pineau d’Aunis “Le Verre des Poetes”

Importer: Metropolis Wine Merchants

Region: France

Sub-Region: Loire Valley

Estimated Retail Price: $20

Purchase Details: Purchased for around $20 from Arlequin Wine Merchant in Hayes Valley neighborhood of San Francisco, California.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, crimson and violet hues.  Not too much of a perceptible aroma or nose.  I get a little bit of plum, blueberry and an aroma that’s almost synthetic in nature.  In the mouth, the wine is not very expressive as far as fruit flavors go.  It’s a little more mineral and dirt driven.

The intriguing thing about this wine are the flavors I’m getting on the very impressionable finish.  Its a very floral, and again, very synthetic in nature flavor that reminds me of some sort of chemical.  Some minty, herbal flavors are also present.  The wine is very dry and has a very firm and austere mouth-feel.

The wine was a lot more drinkable on the second day and still had a very fresh flavor to it as if it had only been opened a few hours before.

Food Pairing & Context in Which to Enjoy: I hate to say this, but this is definitely a food wine.  I know its sort of a cop out by me, describing it this way, but I really think that’s the best way to enjoy this wine.  Earthy foods and game meats would fare well here.

Winery & Other Background Information: Another blogger, Deb Harkness describes this wine a lot better than I can, and really hits the nail on the head when she articulates it like this:

Pineau d’Aunis is at its best–like many wines–with food. This is not really a stand-alone wine unless you are wanting to come to terms with it on an intellectual level. This is only going to work with food, and then think about something earthy like mushrooms, truffles, beans, and charcuterie.

The grape is native to the Loire Valley and is often used to make sparkling wines.  I’d love to try one to see how the flavors from the dry red wine translate into the sparkling version.  Its not often you see a grape like this, so if you’re the type with an adventurous palate, then you should surely try it if you ever see it on a shelf or on a wine list.

Bottling: 2007 Barbera Santa Barbara County

Region: California

Sub-Region: Santa Barbara

Estimated Retail Price: $22

Purchase Details: Purchased for $20 plus tax from Blackwell’s Wines & Spirits in the Richmond District neighborhood of San Francisco, California.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, I’m staring at a pretty dark and opaque ruby red hue.  On the nose, the wine smells fresh and alive.  Aromatic scents of lavender, dried thyme, red fruits and raspberries.  In the mouth, wow!  Again the wine just feels alive.  Flavors of red and blue fruits like pomegranate, raspberries and blueberries tango in my mouth. (geez that was cheesy).  A tart, but fleshy finish ends the ride.

A well-balanced wine that really drinks well now, but could definitely cellar for a few years.  Absolutely delicious!  That’s the best way to sum up the flavor experience with the 2007 Palmina Barbera.

Food Pairing & Context in Which to Enjoy: We had this with a homemade bbq chicken pizza, which I proudly display in this post, and the wine was fantastic with it.  It’s a zesty wine, so it will pair well with a lot of with sweet, savory and earthy foods.

Great white shark sized hunks taken from the pizza indicate that the wine and pizza pairing was most likely delicious.

Winery & Other Background Information: Palmina Winery is owned by husband and wife team Steve and Chrystal Clifton.  They carry no formal education and background in wine making.  In fact Steve’s background is as a musician and Chrystal’s I believe is in art.  Reading stories like theirs are great reminders to me and should be to anyone aspiring to get into the wine business that anything is possible.  Career changes are pretty commonplace in this business.

The winery focuses on producing a host of Italian varietals from arneis to nebbiolo and even to ancient varietal like refosco.  They are captivated not only by the food and wine of Italy, but the way of life emphasizing family, friends and togetherness.  A quote from their website accurately sums up their wine making style:

“They are not trying to emulate the Italian versions of those grapes, but rather interpret the styles to the growing conditions and vineyard sites of the very unique characteristics of Santa Barbara County.  The wines are Italian by tradition and modern by design and all are designed to be an extension of the plate.”

Bottling: 2008 Le Saint Andre Vin de Pays du Var Rose (Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Cinsault & Grenache)

Importer: Paul M. Young Fine Wines

Region: France

Sub-Region: Vin de Pays du Var

Estimated Retail Price: $14

Purchase Details: Purchased from Solano Cellars in Albany, California for $13.50.

Tasting Notes: Very pale coral and salmon hue in the glass.  On the nose, delicate aromas of roses and mineral.  In the mouth and interestingly enough, this rose has flavors that are more reminiscent of white wines.  Apples and white peaches are the main flavors I remember tasting.  Unripe Safeway strawberries added actual rose flavors.  A very light-weight mouth feel and a crisp, dry finish complete the wine.
They also make another rose, the 2008 Cotes de Provence Magali, which we had a few months ago. The information on the website says that the fruit for both wines are sourced from the same vineyards and regions, so I’m not too sure what the differences are between the two wines besides the packaging and slightly differing taste styles.  This wine had a very similar flavor profile as the other except that it was a little lighter in body and a little drier.  I’ll just go ahead and conclude that the Signature series is a “better” line based on the more specific Provence AOC recognition.

The scallop, corn and arugula salad went oh so nicely with the Saint Andre.

Food Pairing & Context in Which to Enjoy: In my review of the winery’s other rose, I state that one must be a little careful with what you pair with the wine because it was so delicate.  With this Vin de Pays du Var being even more delicate than the Cotes de Provence, you need to be even more careful with what you pair with this wine.

Winery & Other Background Information: Alain Combard, an aviator by trade, bought this estate and vineyards in 1991 after working and training with fellow vintner Michel Laroche of Chablis for over 22 years.

I got a nice warm fuzzy kind of feel when I visited the website of this estate.  It’s a family run company that has some member of the family either tending the vines, answering the phone, managing distribution or chasing down the children in the vineyards.  They also make a host of other wines on the estate with reds based on the mourvedre, syrah and cinsault grapes and white wines on vermentino, semillon and ugni blanc.

Unfortunate zuchinni in the background, awaiting their fate.

Winery: Chateau Trinquevedel

Bottling: 2008 Tavel Rose

Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchants

Region: France

Sub-Region:  Tavel, Southern Rhone Valley

Estimated Retail Price: $17

Purchase Details: Purchased directly from Kermit Lynch Wine Merchants in Berekeley, California for around $17.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, a saturated and intense, dark pink hue.  On the nose, ripe red stone fruits and ripe strawberries.  In the mouth, flavors of ripe strawberry and spice.  The wine is firm, rich and juicy and has a dry tea like, but surprisingly refreshing finish.  Although the fruit takes center stage here, the wine never seems heavy or cloying and retains a nice fresh quality.

I’m not sure what the grape make up is on this particular Tavel, but the grapes that are typically used include grenache, syrah, cinsault, mouvedre and carignan (not to exceed more than 10%).  Also, not one grape can exceed more than 60% of the blend.

Food Pairing & Context in Which to Enjoy: This wine can certainly take on the robustness of backyard bbq fare, but it will also pair nicely with an anti-oxidant rich piece of grilled salmon.  Oh yeah, drink it on its own as well

Winery & Other Background Information: Rose from Tavel have a reputation as being the most famous in France.  The fact that it is the only appellation in France whose sole wine is rose explains why.  The roses from Tavel are often robust, rich and fruit forward wines that have more structure and body than most roses.  They can be cellared, but who cellars rose?  I never do.  One of the virtues of rose are the freshness and liveliness that often displayed only in their youth, so drinking them early is a must.

Several factors attributed to the wine making practices contribute to the robustness of Tavel rose.  Portions of the grape must (which is the freshly pressed juice that contains the skins, seeds and stems of the fruit) are kept after “bleeding” – a process separating the skins from the must.  This darker must, which has spent extended time on the skins, is blended back into the lighter must to give the finished wine more weight and body.

If you solely drink red wine and haven’t yet bought into roses or white wines, because they seem froo-froo, try a rose from Tavel.  It may be a good tweener wine to expose you to other wine styles beyond red wines.

The day's specials at the Hendry table.

I know its been several days since the Family Winemaker’s public tasting event, so I apologize for not having my summary posted in a more timely manner.  Believe it or not, one can actually be pretty busy when you’re unemployed.

I tasted a lot of wines and had a lot fun chatting with proprietors, winemakers and sales managers alike.  The event was great and considering the size of the tasting, was very well organized.  The only negative aspect of the tasting was that I wasn’t able to taste everything there.  I know it was an impossibility, but I always go into these events with the hopes of covering everything.  My goal is to always try more new wineries than ones that I’m already familiar with, but its always tough when you walk by the familiar booths and feel the pull to revisit the wines you already know, so I definitely spent some time re-tasting some perennial favorites.

Yours truly doing his best to juggle the writing and tasting.

Here are most of the wineries whose wines I tasted and enjoyed.  I tried to keep good notes and keep everything in order, but its tough when you’re trying to juggle a clipboard, event guide, glass, pen and spit cup.  Somehow I managed, with the help of my lovely assistant of course.

Wineries:

Amapola Creek - Nice zinfandel and an even better cabernet sauvignon from the Sonoma County area.  The winery was started by Richard Arrowood, whose namesake winery was sold several years ago.  I guess Richard is getting back to his roots, so to speak.

Andrew Geoffrey Vineyards – They only had one wine to show that day, the diamond Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon, and it was one of the best cabernet sauvignons of the tasting that day.

Carlisle Winery & Vineyards – To me, one of the best California syrah and zinfandel producers making wine today. Tremendous value when it comes to wiens that are absolutely delicious and age-worthy at the same time.

Cavus – A new winery of which I’ve never heard of.  They had a red blend from the Stag’s Leap district that was big, robust and earthy.  Just found out that dave Phinney of Orin Swift is the winemaker.

Enkidu Wines – Really cool wines.  They do an excellent sauvignon blanc, and some solid syrah and Cal-Rhone blends.  Great people too.  Winemaker Phillip Staehle was a nice guy and actually the only winery and person I spoke with, who “got” and understood the wine blog concept.

Fort Ross Vineyard & Winery - Very pleasant chardonnays and pinot noirs.  They also produce a pinotage which is pretty rare around here.

Fritz Winery - really, just some enjoyable and easy to like wines.  Their reserve line, which I believe is only available to winery mailing list customers, were very good wines; especially the Russian River Reserve Chardonnay.  Owner Clayton Fritz was a pleasure to chat with.

Hendry Wines – Probably our favorite winery of the tasting that day.  Sales and Marketing Manager Susan Ridley was wonderful and patient with the pouring duties.  Well-made, classy wines.  I’m usually a little skeptical when a winery produces too many varietals, but these guys do a good job across the board.

Hollywood & Vine – They only make two wines, a chardonnay and a cabernet sauvignon from Napa, but they’re absolutely delicious!  Get this, the chard comes from Atlas Peak!  Mountain chardonnay fruit from Napa!

Judd’s Hill – Sales manager Devin Joshua represents the wines here. Great guy and solid wines from the family that originally started Whitehall Lane in Napa.

L’Angevin/Peirson Meyer - Outstanding pinot noirs and even better chardonnays.

Larkmead Vineyards – A perennial favorite of mine.  Great value in the Firebelle and always wonderfully textured cabernet sauvignons.

Lawrence Harrison – Micro-production, low-alcohol, bordeaux styled reds.  Very friendly, welcoming and gracious family.

Lone Madrone – Personal label of Tablas Creek winemaker Neil Collins.  Specializing in red and white Rhone varietals.  My favorite was the tannat.

Longboard Vineyards - Nice pinots, sauv blancs and syrah from the Russian River Valley.

Lynmar - Outstanding pinot noir, chardonnay and syrah from the the Russian River Valley.  Their single vineyard estate Quail Hill bottlings are always well-done.

Martin Alfaro - Single vineyard pinot noirs and chardonnay from select sites up and down the California coast.  Winemaker Joseph Matin does a great job across the board.

Praxis – A little bit of everything from viognier to pinot noir, and even an intriguing lagrein.

Robert Foley Vineyards – Finally got a chance to to sample their claret.  Expensive, but a damn fine wine.  Charbono was interesting as well and the petite sirah was solid.

Sensorium Wines - Winemaker and owner Jeff Ritchey does a nice job of showcasing the potential of the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA.  Nice wines and an excellent Santa Cruz Mountains Cabernet Sauvignon.

T-Vine Cellars – These are some intense wines.  Great zinfandels , petite sirah and grenache.

TR Elliott - This was a “sleeper” for us.  I never heard of this winery’s wines and I’m glad I discovered them.  Outstanding pinot noirs.  I believe those who enjoy Burgundy will thoroughly appreciate the wines from T.R. Elliott.  The Burgonet Russian River Pinot Noir was one of the best wines I tasted that day.

Titus Vineyards - One of my favorite wineries in Napa.  I’ve haven’t visited the winery yet, but their wines are always delicious. I love their petite sirah, year in, year out.  Awesome cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc as well.

Another interesting thing of note; I experienced at the tasting were the reactions to my saying that I was here as a wine blogger.  “Oh, wine blog? ooooh, o.k.”  It seemed like many people were either perplexed, disinterested and even skeptical about my presence and mission, and you know what?  It’s o.k.  I understand completely.  It was definitely something I was a little worried about as far as the perception of me as a legitimate trade member.  I’ll be writing a post on my reactions to these reactions in a few days, as it is a phenomenon I’ve been trying to understand myself.

You've seen one San Francisco wine tasting crowd pic at Fort Mason, you've seen them all. Here's my token picture.

Bottling: 2007 Cuvee Terroir

Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchants

Region: France

Sub-Region: Loire Valley, Chinon

Estimated Retail Price: $18

Purchase Details: Purchased from Kermit Lynch Wine Merchants in Berkeley, California for approximately $17.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, such a beautiful pure color of red and blue hues.  On the nose, wonderful perfumed and sweet aromas of berries, lavendar and spice.  In the mouth, you immediately sense how lively and refreshing the acidity of the wine is, as the fruit flavors seem to come alive.  I taste red and blue fruits like blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and cherries.  The wine is medium-bodied and has just enough tannins to keep the stuffing in place, and they’re also soft enough so one can enjoy this bottling early in its life.

Food Pairing & Context in Which to Enjoy: Can be clearly enjoyed on its own or with anything. Seriously, the wine is that flexible.  Food and wine pairing rules can be thrown out the window here.  Just enjoy this with whatever you enjoy eating.

Winery & Other Background Information: Hands down, the best pure cabernet franc being made in the world today is coming from the hard working men at Charles Joguet in Chinon.  If you’ve never had the opportunity to try any of the wines produced by the domain, you are truly missing out on one of life’s sheer pleasures.  The only red wine they make comes from the cabernet franc grape, which expresses itself better in Chinon than in any other region in the world (I know fans of Cheval Blanc may politely disagree).

Charles Joguet understood the magic qualities of the soils in Chinon and thus became an early proponent of bottling each vineyard separately, so each vineyard could showcase their intrinsic and unique qualities.  Borrowing this philosophy from the Burgundians, Charles applied this age old idea in the Loire at a time when everyone was still blending their wines; he was a true visionary.

Although the vineyard lands of Joguet date back to the 1800s, the actual domaine was founded by Charles in 1957 only after his father had died. In  the 1980s, sensing that he wanted to preserve his legacy, Joguet started forming a team that would share and eventually carry on his vineyard management and winemaking philosophy.  In 1997, Charles retired and handed the reigns over to the team he assembled.

The Cuvee Terroir and Les Petite Roche lables are bottlings that are made for early consumption and at less than $20, represent extreme values.  Their single vineyard bottlings can be cellared for years and age gloriously.  Considering their price tags  and ageability, they are also extreme cellar values, so do yourself and your cellar a favor and track these wines down.

Bottling: 2007 Dolcetto D’Alba

Importer: Siena Imports

Region: Italy

Sub-Region: Piemonte

Estimated Retail Price: $12

Purchase Details: Purchased for $24 on a restaurant wine menu at Pizetta 211 in the Richmond neighborhood of San Francisco, California.

Tasting Notes: In the glass, saturated red and purple hues.  On the nose, aromas of sweet oak, spice and red and blue fruits.  In the mouth, loads of cherries, plums and sweet spice.  There’s also a strong “grapey” quality to the wine.  Fine and velvety tannins, a medium body and palate-cleansing acidity on the finish make this a real joy and wonderful quaffer of a wine.

A nice delicious quality exists in this wine that I don’t normally find in Dolcetto.  Dolcetto is a wine that’s made for the table and normally requires food to pair with its natural, tangy acidity and drying finish.  This particular bottling however, could easily be enjoyed on its own.

Food Pairing & Context in Which to Enjoy: Again, wonderful by itself, but would be great with a bevy of Italian foods. We drank this with a lamb and ricotta pizza, a prosciutto and herb pizza with an egg on top (yowza!) and a homemade lamb sausage with farro and tomatoes. We were in a food and wine stupor.

Winery & Other Background Information: Other than being founded by Luigi Arnulfo, there was not much information available on this particular winery.  Their website doesn’t even have any information on the background of the family or the winery.  What I do know is that they produce bottles of all the usual varietal suspects from the Piemonte region — a barbera, nebbiolo, Gavi, Moscato D’Asti, chardonnay and of course Barolo.  The only thing that is missing is a Barbaresco.