It may be September, but it’s not too early to start planning your trip to the 2012 Millésime Bio, Europe’s largest and most impressive organic wine conference that takes place yearly in Montpellier, France.  Among the winning wines from 2011 was a curious 2009 Pinot Noir from Frey Vineyards.  (It won a bronze medal.)  What is most interesting is that this wine hails from America’s first organic winery.  That’s right… it’s an organic wine from a “recent” American company founded in 1980!  With no added sulfites, this wine came in 3rd at a French wine competition.  Given that the conference featured over 500 organic winemakers, this is quite impressive.  So of course we had to try it!

With flavors of strawberry, raspberry, pomegranate, and a hint of unsweetened jam, this very smooth wine is sure to make your tastebuds happy.  It’s a great fall wine, perfect for accompanying chicken, duck, goose, and even turkey meals.  (If pairing with turkey, for best results place a bit of sausage alongside the turkey meat; the sausage helps bring out the wine’s unique French oak flavor.)  This 2009 Pinot Noir also pairs well with flavor-rich fishes like salmon or red snapper.  Try a glass, and see what the French critics found so delightful!  You may be surprised an organic wine can taste this good!

This relatively inexpensive Pinot Noir is quite a treat!  Beautiful garnet in color, its nose consists of violet, iris, strawberries, and black cherries.  Its velvet-like texture is soothing to the tongue, and its body is solid.  For fans of sweeter Pinot Noirs, the Block Nine 2009 is a good find; the typical earthiness that turns people off from many Pinots is very subdued in this one.  Flavors of semi-sweet black cherries delight the tongue, and the spicy finish is very satisfying.  Though not an extremely complex wine, it is incredibly well-balanced (which is quite nice, considering its low price).  Because of its well-integrated taste, plus its balanced tannins and acidity, this is a wine that really “works.”  It’s a sure winner, and is guaranteed to please most wine and non-wine drinkers, alike.  Consider storing a few bottles in a 23-Bottle Wine Grotto Wine Cellar, or an elegant Vinotheque Boxed Up-3 Door Double Deep Credenza, to pull out for unexpected company.  No matter the occasion, this wine will help make it memorable.  Cheers!

Mas de Gourgonnier Les Baux de Provence 2007

A “Red Rhone Blend” (a wine made from two or more traditional Southern Rhone grape varieties), this rustic French wine is a well-balanced, fantastic find!  Consisting of 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Carignan, 20% Grenache, and 9% Syrah, its slight barnyard nose, common to many “old world” wines, also includes blackberries, raspberries, and candied scents.  On the tongue, wild berries, raspberries, wood, herb, smoke, and a candied grape taste give this wine quite a unique-yet-well-integrated personality.  With good texture and a medium body, this complex wine will pair successfully with virtually any meal.  Its finish is excellent, being long, satisfying, and persistent; the intensities of the dissipating flavors are close to equal, which helps one better appreciate the counterpoint of flavors.  Because of its age and complexity, this wine is best served decanted.  A decanter like the Riedel Tyrol wine decanter does justice to this “old world” wine quite nicely.  (Plus, you and your guests will be able to better see and appreciate this special wine’s beautiful, dark blue-red hue.)  Though the prominent aromas and flavors are  even better if decanted an hour before consumption, any length of time this wine spends mingling with the air helps to maximize enjoyment.  Cheers!

Gnarly Head 2009 California Cab

I’ve been a big fan of Gnarly Head’s Cabs for many years, and the Gnarly Head Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 is no exception.  This regal, concentrated wine is rich with dark fruit flavor (currants, black cherries, and tart cranberries), and has a velvety “cab” texture that briefly exposes its well-integrated tannins just before a subtle taste of cloves and violets.  Its consistent, black peppercorn “spice” makes it a perfect companion for meals with meats.  Traditional “steak and potatoes” will always be a good combo, but the wine seems to pair even better with lamb dishes; lamb chops, roast leg of lamb and rack of lamb are perfect companions for the Gnarly Head Cabernet Sauvignon 2009.  The wine works cooperatively with Italian dishes, too, especially pastas with tomato or cheese sauces, or meatballs.  A glass to accompany a robust cheese ravioli or tortellini plate is quite nice!  And decanting a bottle makes it even more immediately amazing.  Try using a stately Riedel Sommeliers Magnum wine decanter to help you quickly open this impressive wine. Cheers!

Casa Julia Sauvignon Blanc 2009

The affordable Casa Julia Sauvignon Blanc 2009 is a delicious white that hails from Chile’s Aconcagua region.  Similar to a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, but with tamer acidity, this wine is full of vitality and great, well-blended flavors.  Following a full, satisfying nose, the wine delights the tongue with lush fruit, tropical fruit flavors, and tasteful citrus notes.  With good body and texture, this chipper young Sauvignon Blanc pairs well with chicken, shrimp, oysters, clams, lobster, salad, fusion cuisine, and lighter cheese appetizers.  If chilling several bottles for a summer celebration, why not use an impressive Franciscan wine credenza?  (Can you tell we looooove wine credenzas?)

Cheers!

What a name! Stray Dog Zinfandel, though it may be a fairly new name, is crafted by a man who’s been producing quality wine for 20+ years, Mark Gendron, who recently sold JanKris winery (founded in 1990.) Mark currently owns JK Estates, and the Wildfire Cellars brand. (Stray Dog Zinfandel is released with the JK Estates label.)

Stray Dog’s interesting, earthy nose contains aromas of wild berries, blackberries, raspberries, walnuts, chocolate, slight tar, and a note of grass. On the tongue, blackberries and black cherries dominate, but this wine is not sweet like other clichéd, “jammy” Zins. In fact, its taste and body are more akin to a good Merlot than a “typical” Zin. The finish, long, powerful, and filled with black cherry, is quite striking and, again, a bit uncharacteristic of traditional Zins. All of this, coupled with good acidity and adequate tannins, make this a wine worth trying. (This wine also took home the Silver Medal at the World Wine Championships.) Plus, Stray Dog Zinfandel paris well with pork, chicken, various seafood dishes, and can even be served with chocolate desserts. With such versatility, and a unique personality, Stray Dog Zinfandel 2006 is surprisingly inexpensive. Take home a bottle of Stray, today, and give it a whirl!

This little guy’s not bad! And by “little guy” I mean the wine, though the wine’s “mascot” happens to be an adorable, little German man.

This good-value, summertime sipper proved exceptionally clear, with a shimmery, pale-yellow color. With an aroma of sufficient intensity, though a little plain, scents of lemon, berry, slight pear, apple, and honeysuckle became more pronounced as the wine opened. Though light-bodied and lean, the wine tasted pleasantly crisp with pronounced, lip-smacking sweet flavors of apple and pear. Though not a complex wine, this inexpensive, yummy delight (less than $10 a bottle) is well-balanced, easy to drink and, just as promised by the sign held by the little guy on the label, “will work with food.” The wine’s crispness allows it to pair easily with chicken, fish, pork, ham, salads, spicy summertime dishes and, of course, desserts, making it ideal for summertime picnics. This wine was an affordable summertime gem I’m glad I picked up! (In fact, I may pull over for a few more bottles the next time I’m out and about.)

This delicate white hails “from the sun, the rain, the wind, and the soil” of South Africa.  Though described as a “light yellow with flashes of green,” my glass appeared a surprising golden yellow of medium intensity, usually indicative of mature, concentrated whites.  Being a very affordable wine (I only paid $7.99 for a bottle), I knew not what to expect.  Although the nose is pleasant-but-weak, and somewhat plain, the wine makes up for it with a soft, creamy body and light crispness.  Flavors are subtle and playfully elusive.  They include guava, gooseberry, subdued mango, and other tropical flavors.  There are even light hints of lime and lemon.  This is not a “big” wine, and so it must be remembered that although this wine is well-structured, it is very delicate.  It will take many sips to appreciate and, like all wine, it gets better as it opens.  It is also a wine that can only be fully appreciated when chilled.  Serving this wine at room temperature will ruin it.  We recommend serving this wine between 46ºF and 48ºF.  For wines such as this, a Marvel Wine Refridgerator like the 23-Bottle Wine Grotto Wine Cellar  will help you attain the perfect serving temperature.  As a final note, if you’ve been following our blog, remember that long-term storage temperatures differ from serving temperatures, so don’t confuse the two!  Enjoy!

It sometimes happens that we get fantastic wine recommendations we just have to pass along, and here are two by Natalie Maclean, the creator of the useful app Nat Decants we reviewed in May.  In a recent a e-mail, Natalie suggested we try the 2010 Sileni Estates Sauvignon Blanc Selection, and the 2009 Perrin Les Cornuds Vinsobres. 

Here’s what Natalie had to say about these winners:

“2010 Sileni Estates Sauvignon Blanc Selection, New Zealand: Vibrant lime and chive notes with some lemongrass zest on the finish. Pair with grilled veggies and seafood. $15.95  Score: 89/100”

“2009 Perrin Les Cornuds Vinsobres, Rhône, France: Juicy, chewy and satisfying, this full-bodied red is the Ultimate Barbecue Wine for steak and hamburgers. $15.00  Score: 90/100”

Needless to say, we were not disappointed with Natalie’s recommendations, hence this posting!  (And Nat is “right on” when she dubs the Perrin Les Cornuds Vinsobres the “Ultimate Barbecue Wine.”)  Enjoy!

“Do you decant Port?” is a question that often arises in whispered tones.  Though literature on the subject of decanting this special wine is extensive, most folks aren’t aware of it, and those who are are often scared off by the seeming complexity and effort such decanting–and timing– entails.
The other night I enjoyed a fantastic glass of Dow’s Late Bottle Vintage Port from 2000.  Though bottled in such a way to avoid getting sediment in the bottle (and supposedly not requiring decanting), this “meant to be enjoyed immediately” quasi-vintage Port underwent a decanting miracle.  With a complex bouquet of wild berries, floral notes, and even a hint of caramel, this rich, full-bodied wine was a symphony of plum, black cherry, fig, apricot, and even dark chocolate on my tongue.  Providing a satisfying, long-lasting finish, this exceptional wine made quite the impression! Interestingly enough, my friends who brought the bottle over were astonished that this was the same wine they selected; it was one of their favorites, too!  Apparently, they had never decanted their Port before, and were experiencing its magical transformation via decanting for the first time.

Decanting Port is often of greater importance than decanting other wines.  Port wines that age in bottles such as Late Bottled Vintage, Crushed Port, and Vintage Port, as opposed to those in casks, are not filtered before they are bottled.  This means that there are more deposits that will form in the bottle.  (Tawny Port, up to 40 years, has its deposits filtered before bottling so it won’t continue to age.)  If you’ve ever been turned off from Port because you once had a glass that contained solid, bitter sediment, your Port was not properly decanted.  But decanting, in addition to removing this safe-yet-unpleasant sediment, is essential to opening up a Vintage Port to bring out its bouquet and flavor.  Because such Ports contain a bit of sediment, it’s often suggested you stand a bottle upright a day or two before opening to get the majority of deposits to sink to the bottom.   Once you’re ready to open your Port, experiment until you find the tool that makes the task easiest for you.  There are a number of tongs, screw pulls, lever pulls, etc. to help you remove the old cork.  Beginners often find Port tongs the most difficult to master, and screw pulls the easiest.  (Many times, because of its age, the cork will break. Do not be discouraged; decanting will help you remove bits of cork that may have fallen into the bottle.)

Once opened, slowly and calmly pour your Port into the decanter of your choice being careful not to stir up the sediment at the bottom by moving the bottle back and forth too much.  Do this in a well-lit area, and with a clear decanter such as a Riedel Vinum Magnum Wine Decanter, so you can see what you’re doing.  When you observe the deposits rising to the neck of the bottle, stop pouring.  If you’re insistent on drinking the little bit of remaining sediment-rich wine, an unbleached coffee filter can be used.  With practice, your decanter will be filled by a majority of sediment-free wine.  Once in the decanter, let the wine sit for a few hours.  Typically, Vintage Port less than 20 years old should be decanted for 2 hours more more before drinking.  Vintage Port less than 10 years old requires more oxidation and should be decanted for three or four hours.  Older bottles are more difficult to gauge because of numerous variables.  That said, 40 year old bottles should receive one hour of air time, and older bottles can be decanted and served immediately.  Opinions on the proper amount of decanting time do differ, but I find these guidelines appropriate for the most common circumstances.  In short, decant your Port!  You’ll be amazed at how good it can be.