WINO 101

Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

It’s that time! Time for the illustrious, the industrious, the infamous, the one and only: the Newsletter that needs no introduction (but I like writing one, anyway), it’s the Carpe Vinum Newsletter of the Week and the Weekly Tasting Announcement of the Week! This week we’re heading to one of the most interesting parts of the Italian wine world: Italy’s Veneto! Interesting how? There are styles in the region that are seldom, if ever carried out elsewhere. There are grape varieties that are featured nowhere else, and the overall experience of the wines are unique in the overall view of both Italy and the rest of the world.

Ah, fair Veneto! It’s the home to fair Verona, the city famous for the setting of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and also home to Venice, “that wet city”. In a book I’ve picked up recently on Italian wine, the section on Vento states that they happen to eat quite a bit of horse there. That’s right. Horse. As a typical American, I’m not sure how to feel about that. So let’s just store that information as trivia and not discuss it. Besides, how often are we going to have to match a wine with a meal of horse? Even in fair Veneto. Again, we’re not talking about it, though. Just sayin’.

So what’s so fascinating about the wines from Veneto? Well, there are quite a few of these wines that set them apart from other wines in Italy, many unprecedented in methods and style. We can start with Prosecco, the quintessential bubbly of Italy. We could say that the worldwide “standard” of sparkling wine is the “Methode Champenoise”, the method of developing the bubbles inside the bottle as pioneered in Champagne (and the Loire, but that’s another story). Most of these sparklers are blends of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. Prosecco, on the other hand is made with the grape Prosecco, and the bubbles are created using a tank-fermented method that originated in the region. Personally I find Prosecco to be lighter, fruitier, less serious and certainly less expensive than its Methode Champenoise counterparts.

Moving on to Soave, possibly the most famous of the Italian white wines. This wine is also quite possibly the most unique of the Italian wines that can have riper and more robust flavors. The wine is also unique considering the native grape varieties of Garganega and Trebbiano di Soave. Much of the Soave region is overrun by cheaper versions of the wine usingless interesting but heartier-growing grape varieties, but many great examples supercede these.

The most famous part of the Veneto wine region, and a rather confusing part at that, is Valpolicella. Grown in the region are the grapes Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara that make up the backbone of all the wines of the region. The handling of the grapes is another story. The simple pressed wine is lighter in style, perhaps like a Beaujolais at times, and referred to as just Valpolicella, Valpolicella Classico, or Valpolicella Classico Superiore. On the flip side of that is a style that dries the grapes for a few months before pressing, a method called “appassimento”. As you would expect, the method reduces the water content of the grapes and concentrates the juice and fruit flavors without sacrificing the acidity or tannin content. The wine made from this method is called Amarone della Valpolicella. Sometimes the fermentation of this appassimento wine is halted to create a sweet wine and is called Recioto della Valpolicella. Just to confuse things further, there is yet another method that adds the leftover pressings from the Amarone to already fermented Valpolicella juice, thus causing another fermentation and adding fore flavor, structure and tannin. This is called Valpolicella Ripasso.

Other regions scattered throughout Veneto tend to lend themselves to regional styles of international varieties, or native varieties done in regional styles. For tomorrow I’ve grabbed a Soave, (yes, a white wine!) as I’ve been loving the style of the region lately. Also for our educational enjoyment there will be featured one of each of the styles of Valpolicella (Classico, Ripasso, Amarone and Recioto), as well as a few regional wines. These are all delicious, but speaking from experience, and Amarone is always especially worth it!

So Friday, March 30th, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

Veneto!!!
Inama 2004 Foscarino Soave
Giuseppe Lonardi 2004 Valpolicella Classico
Corte Giara 2004 Valpolicella Ripasso
Vignalta 2004 Venda Colli Euganei
Allegrini 2003 Palazzo del Torre IGT

Veneto!!
Masi 2001 Brolo di Campofiorin IGT
Sagramoso 2001 Amarone della Valpolicella

And the Super-Special, Delicious-Dessert-y Pour For Cystic Fibrosis!!!
Corte Sant’Alda 2002 Recioto della Valpolicella

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours, and $5 for the Charity Pour.
Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is Portugal, Porto and Madeira!

M

Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

It is time, once again, for the longest, strongest and most superfluous wine newsletter of the week for Carpe Vinum and announcement for the raciest, tastiest and z– uh . . . zaniest wine tasting in town! At the time of writing of this, it is currently: A Nice Day! I’d say Spring has sprung, but I hate clich?�s and spring has never seemed to me a “springy” action, but more of an agonizingly slow process of all green living things cracking open with an itchy nose full of pollen. The end result is ultimately nice, but if everything really did “spring” in an instant, it would probably freak us all out quite a bit. But speaking of nice and spring-like, this week we’re tasting the wines of the French Languedoc and Roussillon!

At the time of writing, the temperature in nice, balmy, sunny Languedoc is: . . . 41 degrees?!? Waitasecond . . . It’s supposed to be warm there! Ooh, right. Round Earth. 8 hour difference. Nighttime there. Gotta ease off on the coffee. In that case, were it daytime, imagine Languedoc as nice, balmy and sunny. Perfect for growing vines. Grapevines. In fact, perhaps the climate is a bit too perfect for growing vines, as production is so high in the area, it has surpassed consumption, at least on the French domestic scale.

In relatively recent years, the Languedoc area has been considered a “Wine Lake”, a major contributor in the overproduction of French wine. This is due to the fact that in Languedoc the production remains high, but on the domestic level in France wine consumption has gone down. There are millions of unsold bottles every year. Much of this surplus is made into ethanol for fuel. (Because, y’know, cars are thirsty for the stuff too.) Languedoc and Roussillon have long been known for their inexpensive wines. This is not to say that all wine that comes out of the area is “plonk”, we wouldn’t be talking about it right now if it were. Indeed, there are many producers creating wines of depth and authority that can compete with many of the greatest wine regions of the world. This crisis, however, is causing the EU to consider the outright removal of many vines in lieu of other industries.

All things considered, though, perhaps the result of this restructuring of the area will be more of a focus on the overall quality of the wines rather than a focus on the “budget” wines they had been so well-known for in the previous ten years. I’d say that niche of the market is a bit flooded already. Flooded like a lake. I’ve seen an awful lot of inexpensive wines from Languedoc and Roussillon. Most of these were “branded” wines, or “grocery store” wines that I wouldn’t touch anyway. Much of that stuff probably is better off powering someone’s Peugeot. I don’t want the reputation of those wines to taint the reputations of some of my favorite Languedoc and Roussillon producers.

We’re here to focus on the quality wines of the Languedoc and Roussillon. We can automatically assume that if the wines have made it across the oceans to our humble doorsteps that it’s certainly worth the trip. Some of these wines featured here tomorrow are old favorites, plus some new and interesting wines thrown in. Plus, the extra-extra charity pour is a dessert wine again! Its a delicious sweet wine from Domaine Joliette coming from Roussillon. Come join in the decadence!

So Friday, March 23rd, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

Languedoc and Roussillon!!!
Domaines des Schistes 2004 Tradition, Cotes du Roussillon
Le Casenove 2004 Masia M, Roussillon
Tour de la Roque 2004 Pic Saint Loup, Coteaux du Languedoc
St. Martin de la Garrigue 2004 Tradition, Coteaux du Languedoc
Domaine d’Aupillhac 2004 Montpeyroux, Coteaux du Languedoc

Languedoc!!
Rene Rostaing 2003 Peuch Chaud, Coteaux du Languedoc
Mas Champart 2003 Clos de la Simonette, St. Chinian, Languedoc

And the Super-Special, Delicious-Dessert-y Pour For Cystic Fibrosis!!!
Domaine Joliette 1990 Riversaltes Ambre, Roussillon

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours,
and $5 for the Charity Pour.

Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is Italy’s Veneto!

M

Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

Welcome to what is sure to be the burliest tasting in town! No, it’s not the “Semi-International Lumberjacks, Kodiaks, and Yetis” convention (S.I.L.K.Y.). It’s far better! It’s time for the Weekly Exploration Into the Spectacular World of Wine With the Carpe Vinum Friday Tasting and Newsletter of Unquestionable and Never Dubious Facts and Fun! (Sorry that doesn’t make an interesting acronym.) This week it’s the wine that would be King . . . of . . . something . . . It’s Petite Sirah! Let’s dive right in. It’s well worth it!

Petite Sirah is a grape variety that makes a wine that is burly, tannic, powerful and flavorful. You know what it is not? It is not Syrah. I’ve seen tastings that will lump the two together, but that’s just not fair to either varietal. The idea has been tossed around for years that Petite Sirah was possible synonym or clone of Syrah. It is not. Genetic research has finally deduced that Petite Sirah is Durif, a cross between Syrah and Peloursin and a native to the French Rhone. Native, but not currently grown there . . . at least not on purpose. It might be lurking between the vines, unidentified in some French Syrah or Peloursin vineyards. But really, the noble Durif had to make it to the New World to break big.

It is currently grown mostly in California where it is still known as Petite Sirah and in Australia where it is grown as Durif. In recent years the Petite Sirah has been surging in popularity as a cult wine. (Not “cult” as in “don’t eat the pudding” kind of cult, but a cult wine as in people discovering it and raving about it on their own rather than having critics telling them that it’s what they need to be drinking.) In fact, like the organizations for Zinfandel (ZAP) and Rhone Varietals (Rhone Rangers), Petite Sirah also has its own advocacy group (PS I Love You).

I’m going to take a quick detour here. (Don’t worry, we’ll still end up on the same road.) I started collecting wine for my own cellar years ago while working at a wine distributor. I didn’t really know anything about cellaring and aging wine and didn’t know what would age best over the years. So I just cellared anything I liked, and I’d always been fond of the Syrahs, Zinfandels, Rhone Blends, and of course the Petite Sirah. For the most part those first three aren’t suitable for longer aging considering what we like about them is the big fruit and the sturdy , but softer tannin, and those are the first things to dissipate when a wine is aged.

As I’ve been bringing things out of the cellar recently I’ve been very disappointed in the fact that I’ve held things too long and the wines had fallen apart and lost everything I liked about them in the first place. This is a depressing prospect when you consider the bottle had been taking up valuable real estate in your cellar and failed to pay off at the end. It’s like a roommate moving out and stiffing you with a decade-old phone bill. Petite Sirah, however, seems to have a sturdier structure that appears more conducive to cellar aging. I recently opened a bottle of the Lolonis Orpheus from 1996, and it was still wonderful 10 years after the vintage date. Still, I don’t recommend aging it that long, but it has me interested in the longevity of the Petite Sirah, and I’m certain to cellar more of it.

Speaking of which, one of my recent cellar additions is on the schedule for tomorrow’s Super-Bonus pour in the continuing series of “Let’s all taste wines we really can’t afford and donate the proceeds to charity!” This wine is the only Australian Durif I’ve been able to find this time around. It’s the Massena “Howling Dog” Durif and it retails at just under $50. I tried it a few months ago and can honestly say I found it spectacular. Highly recommended! I figured this would be another perfect excuse to taste it again. The rest in here are old favorites, tested and true. And will also turn your teeth blue.

So Friday, March 16th, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

P.S. I Love You!!!
McManis 2005 Petite Sirah, California
Concannon 2004 Limited Release Petite Sirah, Central Coast, California
David Bruce 2004 Petite Sirah, Central Coast, California
Train Wreck Cellars 2004 Petite Sirah, California
Foppiano 2003 Petite Sirah, Russian River, Califnornia

P.P.S. I Love You Two!!
Girard 2004 Petite Sirah, Napa Valley, California
Lolonis 2001 Orpheus Petite Sirah, Redwood Valley, California

And the Super-Bonus, Delicious-Wine-We-Can’t-Afford Pour For Cystic Fibrosis!!!
Massena 2004 The Howling Dog Durif, Barossa Valley, Australia
(Robert Parker gave it 88-90 points, if you follow that kind of thing.)

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours,
and $5 for the Charity Pour.

Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is The French Languedoc and Rousillon!

M

Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

Buenos Dias! Or if it’s night when you read this, Buenos Noches! Or if you’re on vacation when you read this, Buenos Aires! Welcome to the Muy Caliente and Muy Bueno and Muy . . . uhh . . . Magnifico Carpe Vinum Newsletter and Tasting Announcement! If you can’t tell by my awful, awful attempt at Spanish we’re tasting wines from Spain this week. And it’s not just any-ol’ Spain! Were pitting the wines of the world-famous and classic Spanish region of Rioja against the relatively-newer, up-and-coming but super-stylin’ Ribera del Duero! It’s a wine battle between two of Spain’s heaviest hitters!

The reigning champion: Rioja! It’s the most famous of the Spanish wine regions which many put on par with France’s Bordeaux. The wines of Bordeaux and Rioja aren’t similar, mind you, but I suppose by History and reputation they are. There is, however, a direct link from winemaking styles brought to Rioja from Bordeaux. In fact, Rioja was the main supplier of wine to the thirsty Frenchmen when the all the French vineyards were destroyed by Phylloxera. This was a boon to the Rioja wine trade. That is, until the Rioja vineyards were wiped out by phylloxera. Perhaps that’s another story. Long story short, though, Rioja is the oldest (Est. 1926) and most famous of the Spanish wine regions making Tempranillo-based wines through years of tradition and reputation.

Enter the challenger: Ribera del Duero! It’s situated Southwest of Rioja down into Spain’s Old Castile area. Although the secrets of this wonderful wine region had been discovered in the mid-1800s (if you’ve heard of Vega Sicilia) the region was not established as a Spanish D.O. until 1982. Enter into the scene Alejandro Fernandez (if you’ve heard of Pesquera or Condado de Haza) who was set out to prove that wines other than Vega Sicilia could compete in the region. Boy was he right! Long story short on that one, everyone else thought it was a good idea too. So the wine scene there exploded. (Well, not literally. That would be a bad thing.) They also make Tempranillo-based wines that can be meaty and austere as well as bright and fruity and explosive (Not literally. That would be a bad thing).

So for the selection I thought it a good idea to explore the Spanish wine ageing designations as well. You may wonder just what the heck I am talking about. It’s easy, though. The Spanish have different terms for how long a wine is aged in oak. The 4 designations are, in order from least time to most time: Joven (little to no oak), Crianza (six months to a year), Reserva (at least 12 months), and Gran Reserva (at least 18 months). Each of those designations also has an increasing scale of how long a bottle must be aged at the winery. As a result, the pricing is also an increasing scale, considering it’s like paying rent for the wine to stay at the winery that long.

Keeping this in mind, we’re doing a straight comparison of Rioja to Ribera del Duero in the categories of Joven, Crianza and Reserva. The “Gran Rerserva” category is a bit more difficult, though. I found one affordable Gran Reserva from Rioja, but was unable to find an affordable one from Ribera del Duero. I found some pretty-much-unaffordable ones, the first priced at about $140 and the other about $190. Perhaps someday. In the place of a Gran Reserva Ribera del Duero we’re filling out the Extra-Extra pour slot with a fancy-schmancy, highly-rated, super-duper Ribera del Duero. And yes, this pour is still the charity pour for Cystic Fibrosis! I can’t think of a tastier way to support a cause! Unless it includes chocolate . . . hmm . . . I’ll see what I can do.

So Friday, March 9th, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

Rioja vs. Ribera del Duero!!!
Altun 2004 Albiker (Joven), Rioja
Vina y Tia 2004 Quintanal (Joven), Ribera del Duero
Amezola de la Mora 2001 Vina Amezola Crianza, Rioja
Montebaco 2001 Pago Senda Misa Crianza, Ribera del Duero
Vina Mayor 2000 Reserva, Ribera del Duero

Round Two!!
Bodegas Saenz de Santamaria 1996 Reserva, Rioja
Bodegas Palacio 1998 Glorioso Gran Reserva, Rioja

And the Uber-Special, A-Bit-More-Expensive Pour For CF!!!
Alonso de Yerro 2004 Maria del Yerro, Ribera del Duero
(Robert Parker gave it 96 points, if you follow that kind of thing.)

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours, and $5 for the Charity Pour.
Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is Petite Sirah! By any other name is . . . uh . . . Durif?

M

Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

Good evening and welcome to another Action-Packed Carpe Vinum Newsletter loaded with Thrills, Chills (like white wines), and Spills (inevitably), and the Tasting Announcement That Goes Along With It. This week were tasting 8 (eight) wines, and one of those with a special purpose (more about that in a moment). But what are they? What’s the Extreme Theme in the Scene this week? It’s the wines of California’s Rhone Rangers!

So what, or who, rather, are the Rhone Rangers? It certainly sounds like a clever name . . . what’s up with these guys? The Rhone Rangers is a wine organization, mostly in California, of wine growers and producers (and some retailers) who grow, sell and love the grape varietals of the French Rhone valley. The Rhone Rangers website states that there are 22 allowable grapes in the French Rhone, and I now shall bore you with the entire list: Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre, Cinsault, Carignan, Petite Sirah, Counoise, Muscardin, Picpoul Noir, Vaccarese, and Terret Noir, (for reds) Viognier, Roussanne, Marsanne, Grenache Blanc, Bourboulenc, Clairette Blanc, Muscat Blanc ?� Petits Grains, Picardin, Picpoul Blanc, and Ugni Blanc (for whites). For those of you just waking-up after that list, you might want to note that there are only 21 varieties listed there. I’m not sure which grape has gone missing, but in checking another source, that one states there are 23 allowable varietals. Then they go on to list 34 varietals. Whatever. Even I’m bored with all that information now.

At any rate, and for the purpose of this tasting, we’ll be concentrating on the more common of the Rhone varietals, as they’re more easily attainable. These include the ever-popular-powerhouse-of-a-grape Syrah, the mostly-used-in-blending-but-equally-delicious-and-spicy Grenache, the heavy-and-tannic-but-still-romantic Mourvedre, the seldom-found-but-increasingly-prevalent Carignane, and the originally-from-the-Rhone-but-not-grown-there-anymore Petite Sirah (aka Durif).

There are many producers in California, Washington and Oregon that release wines made from these grapes, but not all of these wineries are members of the Rhone Rangers. Just to be a purist about it, I thought I might just choose from the list of member wineries. And as far as the wines go, I also tried to find a good cross-section of the grape varieties and the blends, just to get a good idea of what’s going on. They’re all large and fruity, and some of my favorite everyday-wines in the world.

Now onto the special thing: In the past I’ve had an extra-extra pour to feature a special dessert-y, oddball wine, or fancy-schmancy-perhaps-overpriced pour in addition to the regular 7 (seven) wines featured every week. Well, I’m bringing that back, and with a purpose! From this tasting until the 3rd week of May, all proceeds from the Extra-Extra Pour will go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation when I will join my family in Seattle on May 20th for the annual Great Strides Cystic Fibrosis Walk. I will also keep a decanter as a drop point for in-shop donations that will also go towards the entire goal. In the coming days and weeks I’ll post more information, as I have it, on the website. My website, that is. Not just any website. But since you need some extra distractions from work, here are some links.

For more information about the Rhone Rangers.
For more information about Cystic Fibrosis
For more information about the Great Strides walk.
For more information about Carpe Vinum.
For more information that may or may not really be true.

So Friday, March 2nd, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

Rhone Rangers!!!
Zaca Mesa 2003 Z Cuvee, Santa Ynez Valley, California
Cline Ancient Vines 2004 Carignane, North Coast, California
Jade Mountain 2004 Mourvedre, Napa Valley, California
True Grit 2004 Petite Sirah, Mendocino, California
Rosenblum 2003 Base Camp Syrah, Santa Barbara County, California

Rhone Rangers! Even Rangier!!
Justin 2004 Estate Syrah, Paso Robles, California
McRea 2004 Grenache, Washington

And the Uber-Special, A-Bit-More-Expensive Pour For CF!!!
Terra Blanca 2001 Syrah, Block 8, Red Mountain, Washington

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours, and $5 for the Charity Pour.
Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is A Spanish Wine Battle: Rioja vs. Ribera del Duero!

M