For love....of wine Happy Valentine's Day

Cupid is the Roman God of Love and has evolved into an adorable cherub adorning Valentine's Day cards. Bacchus is the Roman God of Wine who induces a frenzy, or bacchanalia. The Krewe of Bacchus hosts an extravagant float each year for Mardi Gras parades and names a celebrity as "God of Wine" to reign over the float. For 2012, the Krewe named Will Ferrel. He is merely the latest in a long line of celebrities to don the ceremonial robes of Bacchus. Some look less ridiculous than others.

My personal favorite is Lorne Greene (yes, Pa on Bonanza) whose theme was "In Vino Veritas" - a Latin phrase translated as "in wine (there is the) truth.

On this Valentine's Day, may your love always be true - and your wine glass half full, never half empty.

Screw tops #4 Tuesday Night Dinner - A bottle of Red - Beso de Vino

Again, thank you to Vicki & Steve for the all-too seldom activity of dining with friends at their home. I mentioned before the article “Best Screw Top Wines” www.nbcwashington.com by Theo Rutherford, wine director, Fiola, Washington D.C. One of his picks was Conundrum from California. The day I purchased it at Belmont Beverage, I asked for suggestions to round out my purchase.  The staffer I asked turned to “Mike” and his suggestion was Beso de Vino.

The Red – Beso de Vino, Old Vine Garnacha, 2009, at regular price $8.99

I am always attracted to wine labels that include “old vine” because I’ve gotten better as I’ve gotten older, so I credit them with same. Old Vine Garnacha comes from 40-year old vines in northeastern Spain. According to www.cheapwinefinder, “the grapes are handpicked and aged in new French oak barrels.” The blend is 85% Syrah (15 year old vines) and 15% Garnacha (40 year old vines) resulting in 13.5% alcohol content by volume.

The bottle has an additional label proclaiming “Wine Advocate 90 Points”, Wine Spectator gives it 89 points and www.cheapwinefinder calls it “an extremely solid ten buck bottle of wine.”

The bottle features Antonio the Bull (you can’t put anything past this farm girl; those are not udders in the label graphic) interpreting Beso de Vino as “Kiss of Wine, the Spanish temptation in a bottle.” The label also identifies the area of origin – Carinena Denominacion De Origen.

Spain has over 1.7 million acres of grapes planted making it the most widely planted wine producing nation in the world but due to low yields, wide spacing of old vines, and dry, infertile soil, Spain produces less wine than leader France, and second Italy. Rioja is the most famous wine region today and the most French of Spanish wine regions, and Sherry is the most famous of all time. D.O. Carinena is the most historic region as wine has been produced there since Roman times and consists of 60 vineyards (Bodegas).

According to Wikipedia, there are 600 grape varieties throughout Spain but 80% of production comes from only 20 varieties. The white wine grape Airen is most used and the red wine grape Tempranillo is second, eclipsing Garnacha. In the Cava producing region of Catalonia, Macabeo, Parellada, and Xarel.lo are used for Spain’s version of champagne.

As a quick side note: I already have a favorite low-priced widely-available Tempranillo – Red Guitar, and am intrigued by Xarel.lo which is described by http://catavino.net as “the spicy white wine mistress of Spanish grapes” recommending the 2007 Pardas Xarel.lo and the 2009 Can Dez Mas L’Equilibrista. Will pursue and let you know!

Since we are exploring screw tops, let’s not overlook this unique screw top. There are 3 small holes on the cap top and a semi-permeable seal under the screw top. A cork allows a tiny amount of air to enter the bottle while the screw top keeps the air out. Does this work better than the other screw tops? I don’t know.

To find this wine at a store near you:

http://www.besodevino.com/ – select “Distributor” from the menu list at the left side of main menu page – and it lists only one Steve Miles, Denver, Colorado – click on that website and it leads you to http://www.smswine.com/. Select “Wholesalers” from the menu bar at top of page and it presents you with a map of the United States – look for your state, click, and ye shall find.

Meet the Winemaker – Marcelo Morales

 

Screwtops continued - Tuesday Night Dinner with Friends - #3 A Bottle of White

in the kitchen with the cook

Thank you to Vicki & Steve for the all-too seldom activity of dining with friends at their home. While claiming that Steve is the cook in the family, Vicki turned out a great meal - thank you!! My only job was to show up with wine. She’s a vodka drinker and he’s a Jack Daniels drinker so I took a red and a white.

I mentioned before the article “Best Screw Top Wines” www.nbcwashington.com by Theo Rutherford, wine director, Fiola, Washington D.C. One of his picks was Conundrum from California. The day I purchased it at Belmont Beverage, I asked for suggestions to round out my purchase.  The staffer I asked turned to “Mike” and his suggestion was Beso de Vino.

The White – Conundrum, California White Blend, 2009;  $24.999 on sale for $19.99

This wine is not a California Chardonnay. It is a downright captivating blend of five white grape varietals – Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Muscat Canelli, Viognier, and Semillon from Napa, Monterey, Santa Barbara, and Tulare counties. “Wine Spectator” called it “the delicious blend of five white grapes is one of the best of its type from California” and the Wall Street Journal says “this continues to be a unique wine.” It was well-matched with Vicki’s parmesan-crusted chicken and I will serve it crisply chilled as a “deck wine” this summer.

As I’ve said before, with a blend, always look to the blender, i.e. the winemaker. John Bolta. He and partners, the Wagner family of Caymus Vineyards (yes, there’s a story there but I don’t know it), keep the blend secret but do share the fact that their approach is to treat each small lot separately – they pick each varietal at several different levels of ripeness and acidity, they ferment some in stainless steel and some in oak,  both seasoned and new, some at cool-temperatures, so “when the time comes to blend , we have not just five lots representing five varietals, but sixty or more components, each offering its own aromas, flavors, and textures.”

There is now a Conundrum Red, however, the winemaker for that is not Jon Bolta but one of the Wagner family, makers of Caymus, Mer Soleil Silver, and Belle Glos Meiomi. Reviews to-date are not impressive so for red, try instead Belle Glos “Meomi” Pinot Noir, another Theo Rutherford recommendation. I would also suggest you try winemaker Jon Bolta’s own brand Lorca but it’s now defunct.

To find this wine at a store near you:

www.conundrumwine.com – select “Where to Buy” from menu bar at top of main menu page – insert your zip code – a nice feature is that they list both retailers and restaurants so you can choose where to try a glass before you buy a bottle

Meet the Winemaker – Jon Bolta




Wine Tasting = Wine Buying, The Results of Friday Night at Cap N' Cork

I said I was going to a wine tasting at Cap N’ Cork and the following were my picks to taste:

Santa Ema Reserve Merlot  as my friend Clara says her favorite restaurant in her new hometown Salida, Colorado serves Santa Ema wines and she is now in love with them

M&R Moscato D’Asti as The Wall Street Journal ON WINE columnists wrote four pages on “Why You’ll Be Drinking Moscato This Year.” FYI -  M&R was not one of their picks.

Cameron Hughes Lot 271 Pinot Noir Russian River as it rates a 90 from Wine Enthusiast, and after the Cinema Center showing of “Sideways” I am driven to taste more Pinot Noir

Cameron Hughes Lot 313 Field Blend because Cameron Hughes has no fields – he is a person who repackages wine purchased from winemakers throughout the world – and is known for buying some great wines and selling them at low prices through Costco, Safeway and online

Colby Red – we bought that a few weeks ago as a “Rocky recommends” but haven’t opened it

I went to the wine tasting – and here’s what I brought home:

1)      Cameron Hughes Lot 300 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley – bought the bottle at $32.99

I bought this because the distributor’s rep Kristen was encouraging Tom the store manager to taste it, and once he did – he called over one of his salesmen, Gunther, to taste it. If the experts like it, I thought I’d better get in on it. And I was not disappointed though a sip from a plastic cup doesn’t do it justice. As Kristen says, “it’s a real treat” but you have to let it breathe for full enjoyment. Also, use a glass.

http://www.sfweekly.com/ November 23, 2011 post by Ben Narasin “Fresh Eats: Cameron Hughes’ Lot 300 Cabernet Sauvignon is a Delicious Bargain” and states: “At $28 a bottle, the price is more than right, though we'd say it drinks more like $65 than $150. Maybe that's why they sold it. Either way, you should buy it, at Costco, Safeway, or directly at chwine.com.”

To find this wine at a store near you:

http://www.chwine.com – click on drop down menu CHWINE LOCATOR – enter your zip code

2)      Smith & Hook Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 Central Coast – wasn’t on the tasting but I bought it on Gunther’s recommendation at $22.99. Named after the original owners of the two farms in Monterey County that were purchased by Nicky Hahn and wife Gaby and planted to create the vineyard which produces only Cabernet Sauvignon. The Hahn family has several labels featuring other grapes: Bin 36, Copa del Rey, Cyclcles Gladiator, Hahn SLH Estate, Hahn Winery, Huntington, Lucienne Vineyards.  

               To find this wine at a store near you:

http://www.smithandhook.com   from main menu page - select TRADE – then select “Where to Buy” and select wine brand and enter your state. The result is name of the distributor for your state often with phone and email address. Just send them a note and ask where your nearest retailer is.