Beating the Wine Blahs
Date: Wed, Sep 10, 2008 Wine Tasting
Ruts.
We all get into them.
This summer, my rut was grassy Sauvignon Blancs from New Zealand. I love them. But sometimes, too much of a good thing is still too much.
So I turned to fellow blogger Sonadora from Wannabe Wino and took her picks for three summery white wines, thanks to the organizational efforts of domaine547. A while back, domaine547 started asking wine bloggers to put together sampler packs of two or three wines that they would recommend to their readers. This is the third blogger pack I've tried, and so far I've enjoyed them all. It's like having a friend you trust serve as your guest sommelier for the evening.
The first wine I tasted from the Wannabe Wino Blogger Pack certainly helped me beat the wine blahs I was experiencing. The 2006 Mauritson Sauvignon Blanc was one of the best domestic Sauvignon Blancs I've had in a long time. (around $17; purchased from domaine547 in a 3-pack of assorted wines for $55) First, let's get this straight: there was no oak. It was fresh, and yes, a bit grassy, but not assertively so like a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Instead, warmer melon, Meyer lemon, and clementine aromas and flavors accompany the grassy notes, which were really more like hay than fresh cut grass. This was a nicely balanced wine that I would definitely buy again. And I warn you now: it is very likely to be on my annual list of wines that will go well with Thanksgiving dinner.
We had the Mauritson Sauvignon Blanc with grilled shrimp and lemon-basil pesto. I loved the way the lemon in the pesto picked up the Meyer lemon flavors and aromas in the wine, and the wine's grassy hay notes were very nice with the basil, too. Served with some crusty bread or linuine, this is a fast, after work meal that tastes like a restaurant dish but can be enjoyed at home.
Thanks to Sonadora from Wannabe Wino and domaine547 for lifting me out of my wine rut. Now on to the next two bottles of wine in that blogger pack!
Wine Blogging Wednesday #49 Announced: What Will You Be Drinking on Election Day?
Date: Tue, Sep 9, 2008 Wine Tasting
What will you drink to celebrate the end of the Bush
era and the beginning of--who knows? (image from Topics from 192 Countries)
On September 17, just a few weeks before election day and a few months before the presidential inauguration takes place, wine bloggers will be telling America what they will be drinking.
That's the theme for Wine Blogging Wednesday 49, hosted by dhonig of the 2 Days per Bottle blog. dhonig lays out some pretty interesting possibilities in his announcement post: "Will it be something to honor the 43rd President, or are you just looking forward to 44? Will it be something from Texas, which Bush calls home, or Connecticut, where he was really raised? Maybe a nice French champagne, a bit of a poke in his eye? Or do you prefer Italian prosecco, since they supported the "War on Terror"? Whatever it is, get ready to lift a glass and toast the end of an era that America will never forget." And Remy from the great blog The Wine Case reminded all of us who are geographically challenged that Shiraz is a city in Iran (which is not too far from Iraq) in his comments on the announcement.
I'll be posting my pick for toasting regime change election day and inauguration day on September 17, and if you have a blog you should join in the fun. No blog? Not to worry. You can always post your ideas on the Wine Blogging Wednesday blog.
Basilicata's Pizza and Pasta Wine
Date: Mon, Sep 8, 2008 Wine Tasting
There are wines meant to be mulled over, thought about, discussed, and dissected.
This is not one of those wines.
It's a wine for drinking when you don't want to mull, think, or discuss. It's a wine for having with pizza while you're watching TV or a movie on the DVD player, or for buying in multiple bottles and setting in the middle of a long, family-filled table adorned with a red check table cloth and big bowls of spaghetti.
The 2005 Alovini Terra degli Eventi is a good QPR choice if you are looking for a simple, flavorful wine to go with traditional Italian-American dishes. ($8.95, Chronicle Wine Cellar; available online from other merchants for $13.95) This is a wine that can handle tomato sauce--lots of tomato sauce--with its aromas of sour cherry and medicinal notes of clove and spice. Blended from Aglianico and Sangiovese, the wine's flavors echo the aromas and are predominantly sour cherry with high-toned blueberry accents and some hints of baking spices. While this wine will do the business for the price, it's not a highly unique or memorable wine.
Italy produces a lot of simple, quaffable reds. They're perfect for pizza and pasta. My rule is, if the wine costs more than the pizza you ordered for delivery you've done something wrong. If it costs less than the pizza, don't think about it too much. Just pop the cork, open the box or pile some strings of spaghetti on your plate, and enjoy.
Basilicata's Pizza and Pasta Wine
Date: Mon, Sep 8, 2008 Wine Tasting
There are wines meant to be mulled over, thought about, discussed, and dissected.
This is not one of those wines.
It's a wine for drinking when you don't want to mull, think, or discuss. It's a wine for having with pizza while you're watching TV or a movie on the DVD player, or for buying in multiple bottles and setting in the middle of a long, family-filled table adorned with a red check table cloth and big bowls of spaghetti.
The 2005 Alovini Terra degli Eventi is a good QPR choice if you are looking for a simple, flavorful wine to go with traditional Italian-American dishes. ($8.95, Chronicle Wine Cellar; available online from other merchants for $13.95) This is a wine that can handle tomato sauce--lots of tomato sauce--with its aromas of sour cherry and medicinal notes of clove and spice. Blended from Aglianico and Sangiovese, the wine's flavors echo the aromas and are predominantly sour cherry with high-toned blueberry accents and some hints of baking spices. While this wine will do the business for the price, it's not a highly unique or memorable wine.
Italy produces a lot of simple, quaffable reds. They're perfect for pizza and pasta. My rule is, if the wine costs more than the pizza you ordered for delivery you've done something wrong. If it costs less than the pizza, don't think about it too much. Just pop the cork, open the box or pile some strings of spaghetti on your plate, and enjoy.
Today on Serious Grape: Five Wine Books I Can't Live Without
Date: Fri, Sep 5, 2008 Wine Tasting
Today in my column Serious Grape over on Serious Eats, I'm talking about the five wine books I can't live without.
The list includes a reference book, a grape guide, an annual report, a tasting book, and a food and wine pairing book. I'd love to know what you think, and whether I've missed any of your indispensable titles. Head over there and check it out if you are looking to build your own wine library, or seeking some good titles for gifts for wine-loving friends.
Also, starting this week Serious Grape goes weekly. The foodies have decided the wine coverage is a good thing, and so I'll be posting there every Friday. Monday through Thursday, it will be as usual here at GWU$20.
Have a great weekend, and see you on Monday with some more wine picks.
All Aboard for Basilicata in September
Date: Thu, Sep 4, 2008 Wine Tasting
On the instep of the boot of Italy there is a region with two stretches of coastline, lots of mountains, and a history of habitation that stretches past the Romans, through the Greeks, and into the depths of the Paleolithic period. It's a forbidding landscape, with craggy peaks and rough seas punctuated by more tranquil harbors that are not for the faint of heart. (photo of Maratea's coastline by mozzercork)
The people of the region are known for two things--their deep faith (they've had more earthquakes in this region than in most, so that faith has been tested), and their ability to resist the attempts of their more powerful neighbors, pirates, and invaders from the sea. In the 18th century, a bandit named Angelo Duca lived in the hills of Basilicata, robbing from the rich and giving to the poor and earning himself the heroic reputation of an Italian Robin Hood.
As regular readers know, I'm drinking my way around Italy this year, hitting all the regions I can before 2009. It's already clear to me I'm going to want to continue discovering great Italian wine next year, and finish up with the remaining 9 or 10 that I wont' get to in 2008. (photo "Flowers on Second Floor" by kirtaph).
This month I'll be drinking some of Basilicata's wines to see if they have the same rugged individualism as the land and the people. Basilicata has no indigenous grapes. The Greeks brought over Aglianico--a corruption of Hellenico in the local dialect--and began planting it around Mount Vulture. It spread from there throughout the region, and today Mount Vulture remains a center for viticulture in the region.
I've got a red
(with Aglianico in it, of course) and a white (wait until I tell you about that--it's made from varieties that may surprise you). As I learn more about the wines of Basilicata, I'm struck by the range they represent from the simple and unpretentious to the elegant and quirky. ("Wine is a Cultural Product," by jntolva. You can read about John's trip to his ancestral homeland of Basilicata on his blog--it's a terrific story, full of the wine, food, places, and people of the region).
This is my first foray into the wines of Basilicata, so if you have any tips to help me and other regions on this journey of discovery, please leave them in the comments below.
Budget Friendly White Burgundy
Date: Wed, Sep 3, 2008 Wine Tasting
Burgundy and "budget friendly" don't usually appear in the same sentence.
So imagine my surprise and delight when the white Burgundy I bought for a little over $15 turned out to be an excellent QPR find. I bought my bottle from Chronicle Wine Cellar for $15.95. Expect to see it in your neck of the woods for between $13 and $30. And I have to say, even if you pay around $30, you probably won't feel you've been ripped off--which is a testament to the QPR on this wine if you pay under $20.
The 2005 Vincent Girardin Cuvée Saint-Vincent Chardonnay came from a great vintage in Burgundy, and is made by a great maker. I've had a number of Girardin wines, most from his second label and all red. But this was one of those wines that actually makes you understand how great Chardonnay can be when people just leave it alone and let it be itself. There were crisp aromas of apple, stone, and sea salt that were very fresh and enticing. The apple notes carried through the flavors, and the aftertaste turned butterscotchy and rich. But the wine was never heavy, oaky, or clumsy. It was nicely balanced, and very well made.
With the exception of steak, I honestly can't think of any food that this would be terrible with, and its so flexible that almost anything you're serving would be fine. We had it with a Chicken BLT salad. I added some avocado (just as I do on the sandwich) and the creaminess of the avocado in the salad was fantastic with the creaminess of the wine. Ditto the fresh apple and sea salt notes of the wine with the bacon (applewood smoked bacon, anyone?)
This is one elegant, classy wine that is still fun and not too profound. If you liked Katherine Hepburn in The Philadelphia Story, I think you'll like this wine. Give it a try even if you normally sniff at Chardonnay. You won't be sorry.
Wine Book Club #5: Back to School/Election Edition Featuring Tyler Colman
Date: Tue, Sep 2, 2008 Wine Tasting
I'm pleased to announce that I'll be hosting the 5th edition of the Wine Book Club, the online book club for wine lovers who also love to read.
On October 28, 2008 we will be meeting to discuss a book that fits nicely into what will be on many minds this fall: back to school and politics. The book under discussion will be Tyler Colman's Wine and Politics: How Governments, Environmentalists, Mobsters, and Critics Influence the Wines We Drink. (University of California Press, $27.50; available through Amazon.com for $18.15)
Remember those days of sitting in undergraduate lectures and listening to a professor talk about their subject of expertise? Well I've started the book, and I feel like I'm learning about wine and politics from a very talented teacher who knows a lot about his subject.
As many of you know, Tyler Colman is at the top of the class in wine blogging as Dr. Vino. What you may not know is he really is a doctor, and holds a PhD degree in politics from one of my alma maters, Northwestern University. I'm hoping to entice him to answer a few questions for us about his book before our book reports are due on October 28, 2008. If you'd like to participate in Wine Book Club #5, all you have to do is get your hands on a copy of Tyler's book, read it, and post a review on your own blog on October 28. That gives you almost 2 months to get this book finished, which should be plenty of time. (I never got a deadline that generous in college!)
Don't have a blog? Post your review on the Wine Book Club site in the comments section for this announcement post, or on Shelfari, or on the Discussion Board for the Wine Book Club on Facebook. You can also leave a link in the comments to my review, which will of course be posted on October 28.
I'm hoping a lot of bloggers, and fans of wine blogging, turn out this month to read Tyler Colman's book. And be sure to check out the roundup of responses to Jancis Robinson's book from Wine Book Club #4, now that Farley's back from vacation, on Wine Outlook.
Happy Labor Day!
Date: Mon, Sep 1, 2008 Wine Tasting
Wishing you and yours a pleasant and restful holiday.
And a personal thanks to all the hard-working wine bloggers out there who don't make a living doing this--they just do it because they love to communicate about wine. May your wine cellars always be full, your computers always be up-to-date, your readership be ever increasing--and may your real job continue to pay the mortgage so you can continue!
Image from The Quaker Agitator
Today on Serious Grape: Wine Survival for Early Fall
Date: Fri, Aug 29, 2008 Wine Tasting
It's crazy time.
Back to school. Back to work after summer vacations. Back to clothes with waistbands and shirts with buttons. (picture by Avolore)
Today on Serious Grape, the wine column I write for the fantastic food site Serious Eats, I've got a wine survival guide to get you over the late summer blues and through the early fall crazies.
It includes my shopping list for a mixed case of wine so you will always have the right bottle to try with your takeout, put on your table when entertaining, and pair with all your transitional meals. Rather than running to the store every time you need some wine, this will give you that comfortable feeling that you're ready for any eventuality. A mixed case is kind of the wine equivalent of restocking all your pens, paperclips, and computer supplies. Check it out and see what you think.
Most importantly, remember to ask your wine merchant for a mixed case discount. It's a typical courtesy that many of us don't take advantage of, but if there's a time to take every discount coming to you, it's now.
Washington State Riesling to the Rescue
Date: Wed, Aug 27, 2008 Wine Tasting
It's hot. I'm hot. I'm tired. I'm overworked. I'm eating lots of takeout.
Riesling to the rescue.
There is no joy so profound as I experience back to school, Labor Day, and the looming need to buy fall clothes as a cool bottle of Riesling waiting for me in the fridge when I pull into the driveway after a long day of work with a few cartons of Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese, or Japanese food sitting on the passenger seat next to me. Riesling is the perfect match for Asian food, and because you can store it in the fridge it's always ready when you need it (just let it warm up for 10-15 minutes before your drink it or you'll miss out on Riesling's extraordinary aromas).
Because I love its low alcohol zinginess and Asian food-friendliness so much, I'm always on the lookout for new labels I haven't tried before. My latest discovery is the 2006 Mildbrandt Traditions Riesling from Washington. I purchased this for $12.49 in my local grocery store; you can find it near you for between $10 and $15. It was pale in color which suggested cool, clear water. The aromas and flavors ran the spectrum of citrus and flowers from orange blossom, to Meyer lemon, to lemon peel. There was a nice, juicy finish that kept you reaching for more to sip along with your ever-diminishing pile of pad thai. This wine also had a relatively low alcohol level for a domestic white at only 12.5%, which is good news when it's so hot outside.
What I loved most about this wine was that it was slightly off-dry but still restrained and balanced. Oh, and I loved its pricepoint, too. This certainly qualifies as a wine with excellent QPR, given its clear, refreshing citrus and floral flavors. It may not be as complex as a German Riesling, but it will combine with your takeout beautifully. So if you see this in your local store buy several bottles, leave them in the fridge, and the next time you're running late and General Tso is your dinner date you'll have one less thing to worry about.
Wine Book Club #4: Tasting Pleasure
Date: Tue, Aug 26, 2008 Wine Tasting
Today I'm participating in the 4th edition of the Wine Book Club, hosted by Farley the Wine Poet from Wine Outlook.
The title she picked, Jancis Robinson's Tasting Pleasure, was one of those classic wine books that I always meant to read, but somehow never quite got around to opening. I'm so glad that Farley got this book of my shelf and into my hands. Robinson has a wonderful voice when she writes, and I was quickly caught up in the story of how she developed from a wine novice to a wine expert.
Robinson's wine roots go back to Italy, where she drank wine from the local co-op while working as a maid in a hotel, but her earnest study of wine happened at Oxford University. You may associate Oxford with rowing, rugby, and the debates at the Union (not necessarily in that order) but I can tell you from first-hand experience that the University may be the world's best wine-appreciation experience for those under 21. Colleges and other university institutions have had cellars since the medieval period, and students and dons in residence there take wine knowledge as seriously as they take Shakespeare's sonnets and particle physics.
It was not until Robinson left Oxford that she began her circuitous route (via working in the travel industry and working in a wine bar) towards becoming a wine writer. And it is where Robinson talks about writing about wine that she is at her absolute best in what is a marvelous all-around book. Throughout this memoir, the reader is struck again and again by her sensitivity to the individual palate, her concern that truly extraordinary and different wines don't become lost in a sea of homogeneous wines shaped by a mysterious collective palate that emerges in tasting panels, and her humility concerning what she still doesn't know about wine. At points, she almost apologizes for her hesitancy in making wine recommendations, but this (I think) is one of the reasons she is so very good at what she does: she believes that all she is qualified to tell you is whether she likes a wine or not, and why.
The subtitle of this book, Confessions of a Wine Lover, is really the best possible description for her chatty, informal, and tell-all story. Robinson does not tell us everything, perhaps, but she tells us an awful lot (including her childhood experiences battling anorexia) in a way that makes us laugh, gasp in admiration, and shake our heads in disbelief at the way the wine world works. By the end of the book, it is almost impossible not to like her enormously and respect her deeply for what she accomplished as one of the first women in the wine writing business.
A resounding thank you to Farley for picking this classic title. If you didn't read along with us these past two months, I hope that this review convinces you to put Tasting Pleasure on your list of must-reads in the future. Farley has promised us a round-up of posts next week, and I'll the title we're reading for the 5th edition of the Wine Book Club on September 2. And if you'd like to participate in the Wine Book Club as a host or as a "Spin the Bottle" featured reviewer, please let me know in the comments or by dropping me an email.
Wine Book Club #4: Tasting Pleasure
Date: Tue, Aug 26, 2008 Wine Tasting
Today I'm participating in the 4th edition of the Wine Book Club, hosted by Farley the Wine Poet from Wine Outlook.
The title she picked, Jancis Robinson's Tasting Pleasure, was one of those classic wine books that I always meant to read, but somehow never quite got around to opening. I'm so glad that Farley got this book of my shelf and into my hands. Robinson has a wonderful voice when she writes, and I was quickly caught up in the story of how she developed from a wine novice to a wine expert.
Robinson's wine roots go back to Italy, where she drank wine from the local co-op while working as a maid in a hotel, but her earnest study of wine happened at Oxford University. You may associate Oxford with rowing, rugby, and the debates at the Union (not necessarily in that order) but I can tell you from first-hand experience that the University may be the world's best wine-appreciation experience for those under 21. Colleges and other university institutions have had cellars since the medieval period, and students and dons in residence there take wine knowledge as seriously as they take Shakespeare's sonnets and particle physics.
It was not until Robinson left Oxford that she began her circuitous route (via working in the travel industry and working in a wine bar) towards becoming a wine writer. And it is where Robinson talks about writing about wine that she is at her absolute best in what is a marvelous all-around book. Throughout this memoir, the reader is struck again and again by her sensitivity to the individual palate, her concern that truly extraordinary and different wines don't become lost in a sea of homogeneous wines shaped by a mysterious collective palate that emerges in tasting panels, and her humility concerning what she still doesn't know about wine. At points, she almost apologizes for her hesitancy in making wine recommendations, but this (I think) is one of the reasons she is so very good at what she does: she believes that all she is qualified to tell you is whether she likes a wine or not, and why.The subtitle of this book, Confessions of a Wine Lover, is really the best possible description for her chatty, informal, and tell-all story. Robinson does not tell us everything, perhaps, but she tells us an awful lot (including her childhood experiences battling anorexia) in a way that makes us laugh, gasp in admiration, and shake our heads in disbelief at the way the wine world works. By the end of the book, it is almost impossible not to like her enormously and respect her deeply for what she accomplished as one of the first women in the wine writing business.
A resounding thank you to Farley for picking this classic title. If you didn't read along with us these past two months, I hope that this review convinces you to put Tasting Pleasure on your list of must-reads in the future. Farley has promised us a round-up of posts next week, and I'll post the title we're reading for the 5th edition of the Wine Book Club on September 2. And if you'd like to participate in the Wine Book Club as a host or as a "Spin the Bottle" featured reviewer, please let me know in the comments or by dropping me an email.
An Italian Wine for Beaujolais Lovers
Date: Mon, Aug 25, 2008 Wine Tasting
Do you like wines from the Beaujolais made from Gamay?
If you do, have you tried an Italian variety called Cesanese? When I tasted it all I could think of was that it was Italy's indigenous analogue to that better-known French grape.
Cesanese grapes are a particular point of pride for the Pallavicini family, who have been growing grapes in the Lazio region since the late 1600s. They have been working to preserve indigenous varieties such as Malvasia del Lazio, Ciliegiolo, and Bonvino as well as planting international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Verdot.
Their 2005 Pallavicini Tirso was a light bodied-red wine made with 100% Cesanese that is ideal for serving slightly chilled just as you would a Beaujolais. ($7.99, Weimax; available elsewhere for around $14) It was dark eggplant in color with grapey and plummy aromas and a touch of deep earthiness. The flavors continued along in this vein, with the earth coming farther forward to meet up with the plums. The wine had 12% alc/vol and there was a juicy aftertaste. This simple wine was pleasant and refreshing and at well under $10, it represented good QPR so long as you aren't expecting a robust Italian red.
Cesanese is an ideal partner for simple, rustic bistro or trattoria food. We had it with a quick version of Pollo alla Romana, where chicken is cooked with peppers, tomatoes, capers, and prosciutto. With some crusty bread and a big salad, you've got a perfect meal. The wine's earthiness and fruit flavors went well with the acidity of the dish and the sweetness of the sauteed peppers. With all the fresh tomatoes in local farmer's markets and ripening on backyard vines, this is a grape to remember when you're looking for something to pair with late summer tomato sauces and salads.
So try Cesanese if you get the chance. But beweare: the increased demand for Italian wines may have led to a reorganization of Pallavicini labels. The Tirso label is no more as best I can discover, replaced by wine labeled "Cesanese" and a different picture. The label for the 2005 Tirso is now being used for a Sangiovese wine called "Tiaso." So if you see this wine in the store, make sure that you're getting Tirso and not Tiaso if you're trying to secure some of this rare Italian grape.
AVIN3952653959051
