Owner: Wine Outlook URL:http://www.wineoutlook.com Join Date: Thu, 01 Feb 2007 20:15:47 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: Wine made easy and interesting: reviews, food pairings, anecdotes, and poetry by a Southern girl working at a CA winery Site statistics:Click here
Primed for Rating Rioja 2007-04-20 17:34:20 If you read The Winemaker’s Wife, you’ve already seen my picture. But of the two I took, that was the one I preferred to showcase the wines from the Rioja
tasting Tuesday. I went into it with 2 possible bottles, both of which I proclaimed as “cheating” when I entered. One was from the wrong but nearby region of Ribera del Duero, with similar grapes, and the other was a rosado. While technically that wasn’t illegal, I assumed the cellar rat meant red when he picked the theme.
In Rioja, Spain’s dominant wine region, red wines are made from Tempranillo, Garnacha (Grenache), Mazuelo (Carignan), and Graciano. In some rare cases, Cabernet Sauvignon is allowed. With the whites, Malvasia and Viura take the stage. I actually wanted to bring a white but put off shopping too long and didn’t have as many choices.
For an industry that started out fairly isolated in the 15th century, growing with monks providing refreshments for pilgrims on religious jo Read more:Primed
, Rating
Wine Updates 2007-04-20 03:25:59 A few updates in the wine world:
*This Saturday is one of 4 each year that are part of the Santa Cruz Mountains Passport Program. I won’t go into too many details, as I’ve written about it before. Just remember it’s a great chance and a good price to try some SCM wines that you might not be able to otherwise.
*Mississippi readers–don’t forget this Saturday is also Sante South.
*Wine Blogging Wednesday #33 is set to go for May 16 over at Doctor Weingolb (see his post for more details). The theme? Mid priced ($15-30) wines from Languedoc-Roussillon. I tend to avoid French wines unless it involves my winetasting group, so this is a good WBW for me….
*Sonoma County Showcase Weekend of Wine & Food will take place July 12-15. Sounds like 4 days of wine and food from Sonoma’s best winemakers and chefs. Luxury packages (spa, golf, etc) are available as are private winery lunches and dinners, a Sonoma Family Style gala dinner, and Taste of
Sonoma:
Tragedy at Virginia Tech 2007-04-19 20:46:38 Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund
April 16, 2007, will be remembered as one of the darkest days in the history of the Virginia
Tech community and the world beyond.
To remember and honor the victims of those tragic events, the university has established the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund to aid in the healing process and generate financial support.
The fund will be used to cover expenses including but not limited to:
Grief counseling
Memorials
Communication expenses
Comfort expenses
Incidental needs
If you plan to give, please click the link below:
Steve Shickles
451 Press, LLC
Read more:Tragedy
, Virginia Tech
Sante South Wine Festival Tonight! 2007-04-21 21:43:23 Here’s a link to my Jackson Free Press piece about tonight’s wine festival. It didn’t make it to print due to Frank Melton’s antics and Earth Day.
SanteSouth
, Mississippi wine event
Read more:Festival
, Tonight
Thinking Ahead to Harvest 2007-04-21 20:09:40
Some very nice wine club members–Steve and Karen Dubosky–sent me this picture of grapes that they took when winetasting in Placerville last fall. It appears to be at the very end of the harvest, as the grapes look like they’re about to burst open with juice…
harvest, grape picture, Placerville
Read more:Harvest
The Grapes Are Growing. 2007-04-24 02:27:58 I love to garden, but living on the second floor with limited space doesn’t make that easy. Therefore, I can only do so much with what I have. The windowsills are filled with parsley, mint, basil, chives, etc, along with a jade plant and something I only know as angel’s wings, a clipping of which I somehow managed to bring on the plane coming back from my Christmas trip home and which has returned to life rather impressively. Thyme and daisies are starting to bud, but I have to worry that those dang bugs from last year will show themselves again.
With that fear in mind, I take great joy in watching the grapes come along at the winery. When I enter the gate, make the curve around the pond, and the vineyards come into view, it’s always with a sense of happiness and awe that I mark their progress. From brittle, empty vines to small green leaves uncurling…I get to watch them grow. Some days I might forget to really look, but when I do, the changes are even more Read more:Growing
Decisions, decisions 2007-04-27 18:24:57 Pardon me, readers and drinkers, while I tread water (or should I say wine?) for a moment. When I return to regularly scheduled programming, there will be tales of a damn good meal and tasting group results.
Meanwhile, I read about this over at Wannabe Wino and here’s more info on how you can win wine for a Washington winery’s winning name.
Spain in the City 2007-04-27 00:52:47 Last weekend my Irish friend had a great idea: have dinner and wine in a Spanish setting (since she missed the Rioja tasting). We met up at Andalu, a fun tapas bar in the Mission, on the corner of 16th and Valencia. With great menu choices for both food and wine, I can see why we had to wait about 10 minutes for a table at 10 pm, even with a reservation.
Read more:Spain
Mmmmmartella Grenache 2007-04-26 00:42:11 My past few posts have been grounded in the abstract, so I’m feeling the call to be more specific. And you can’t get more specific than a wine review. Er, well, minus the subjectivity of the whole thing…. I drank the 2004 Martella Grenache the other evening. The grapes come from the Oleta Vineyard in Fiddletown, courtesy of Richard Martella, Michael’s brother. The bottle itself was given to me in exchange for writing some letters or such for Michael. (He’s a great winemaker but he doesn’t like to write, and I don’t mind getting paid in wine). On the nose, and it was a beautiful one, there was cinnamon, cedar box, and plum. More plum, pepper, and a little bit of soy sauce filled the mouth with a nice smoothness. Definitely easy to drink a glass or two.
Without trying too hard, I made for a rather appropriate pairing. I had a couple boneless pork chops marinating in a mixture of soy sauce, orange juice, and garlic for a few hours in the fr
This Thing Called Collecting 2007-04-25 00:13:33 Yesterday I got a very exciting delivery, something I’ve been wanting for ages and finally broke down and ordered. It was “The Chosen Collection”– all 7 seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in one boxed set with new special features, interviews, etc. Now. Before you go calling me crazy either because
A) You don’t understand why I would want it in the first place…(Hey, I feel you. I was a doubter once, too, thinking it was a silly kids’ show and would ashamedly buy the dvd’s for my brother. Until I actually watched it and realized the genius of Joss Whedon and his ability to turn plotlines about vampires and demons into metaphors for life)
–OR–
B) You’re wondering what the heck this has to do with wine…
Let me explain. I had a brief moment of guilt, when I was slicing through taped cardboard, where I wondered if I was cheating. Part of the joy of collecting is the chase, the search. Whether it’s digging Read more:Collecting
, Thing
Give Me a Gamay 2007-05-01 18:18:33 Last week we had another episode of the winetasting group. This time the victim was Beaujolais. Now, you’ve most likely had the Nouveau version at some point, but it’s not fair to base your opinion on that. Beaujolais Nouveau goes through carbonic fermentation at a super fast speed to enable that third-Thursday-of-November release. Usually pretty dull, often watery and tasting of bubble gum or nail polish remover, its claim to fame is as a Thanksgiving wine (perfect timing, and it’s cheap and plenty).
However, Beaujolais is actually the southern section of Burgundy, making use of the Gamay grape rather than Pinot Noir. Interestingly, this smaller region can, in some vintages, produce more wine than its northern neighbor. While most of the wine produced from Gamay should be drunk young, some of the crus (Morgon, Moulin-a-Vent) from better vintages can age for almost a decade and may even begin to taste like Burgundy.
The key is to seek out the ‘better stuff,&rs
Ridge Zin and Kinky Boots 2007-04-30 08:58:33 Last week my teacher friend kept me company while making use of a cookbook I recently received. Love Rachael Ray or hate her, but admit she knows how to make a good meal in no time. I chose to construct flank steak sandwiches, marinating one half in lemon and thyme as she suggested, and the other half in Worstershire, garlic, and dijon mustard. A nice sear before cooking in the oven, on the rack below sweet potatoes sprinkled with brown sugar and olive oil. The other side was salad dressed with a blue cheese/dijon vinaigrette and topped with pears.
I chose to serve the 2003 Ridge Independence School Zinfandel, thinking that grape would be a nice match for the blue cheese, as well as the spicy components of the mustard and garlic. It was. Turned out to also pair well with the spunky transvestite in KinkyBoots
. Almost qualified as ‘a feel-good movie’ and while not quite making it (think Billy Elliot, The Full Monty), it was still a good choice.
The wine, however, was a
The Queen, Greek Food, and Pinot Noir 2007-05-04 19:01:41 The other night the teacher and I continued our tradition of dinner and a movie– with wine, of course. She always tells me, “I have wine, too, you know.” But as I am trying to move some of my inventory to make more room, I usually supply it. The dinner was kabobs from Truly Mediterranean in the Mission–lamb for me, with feta added. Messy but sooo worth it. The wine was from a friend who works at a nearby SCM winery…some Pinot
Noir from the bottom of the barrel, so to speak. Unnamed and unlabeled, it was a little hazy and quite spicy. Black fruits, cherry, and earthiness fought against the slight bitterness that finally subsided after being open half an hour. While the food and wine went quite well together, this time the movie didn’t fit. The Queen
, despite its superb acting, was a little lacking in the spice factor. We both admitted later it was hard to keep our eyes open at the end. Our other friend (the biodegradable wine fan) had already s Read more:Greek
Taking Wine Home That’s Made From Home 2007-05-03 23:04:41 The other night I opened up a bottle of unlabeled wine. My co-worker Ryan (I’d call him my friend, if he’d let me) makes wine on his own label he dubbed Bonfire Vineyards. With the help (and storage space) from some friends, he’s been producing Barbera, Cabernet, Cabernet Franc, and some blends. A couple weeks ago as I was leaving The Villa, he handed me a bottle, on which he scribbled ‘2006 Blue Moon Sauvignon Blanc.’ I just called him to see where the grapes are from, but he couldn’t remember…so I don’t feel guilty for not providing any more information. (Edit: got a call back. Mendocino.)
This is the first white of his that I’ve tried. Having really enjoyed the reds, I was expecting good things. The only disappointment was not for what the wine was but what it wasn’t–my idea of a typical Sauvignon Blanc. And the only problem with that was that I was drinking it with my yummy crab and avocado salad with grapefruit Read more:Taking
Half Moon Bay: More than Just Fish 2007-05-03 00:42:33 Monday I finally made it to La Nebbia on Highway 92, nestled among Christmas tree farms and garden supplies. It’s one of the wineries closest to where I work, and visitors are always asking for suggestions as to their next stop. As Half Moon Bay is a quaint little coastal town, people love to go there. So, it was about time. I met BK outside the tasting room and was surprised to find that it’s open 10-5, daily. For those wanting to get an early start, I suppose. While the room itself is small, it was welcoming, with a short bar, big window, and wall full of goodies–almost enticing me to buy a champagne stopper except A) I already have one and B) sparkling wine is usually the one bottle I have no problem getting through.
La Nebbia sources all the grapes from other vineyards, as they have none of their own. They purchase bulk wines for bottling themselves and also for allowing people to bring in empty bottles on designated Saturdays to be filled for less than $5. Aro
I’ve Come a Long Way (With Wine, Anyway) 2007-05-05 21:09:29 Some days it seems like there are more downs than ups. Other days, something will happen that makes you think, “Hey, I am doing the right thing!”
Yesterday, I had one of those moments. Mr. Martella was down in the production area, peering into one of the smaller tanks, and I asked him if he was tinkering with his Sauvignon Blanc. He was, in fact, and called for me to come on down there. I did and we both tasted the wine, commenting on its acidity and residual sugar. Then he asked if I wanted to try his Viognier, which, of course, I did. We stood there spitting and talking, discussing production and price points. And the Martella Viognier? Let’s just say I can’t wait until it’s peachy, flowery contents are in the bottle, so I can buy some.
When I went back upstairs to the tasting room, it struck me how easily unscary that was. And I remembered the girl I was when I first got out here and then when I started writing this blog… ashamed of my pala Read more:Anyway
Stats Hit Too Close to Home 2007-05-09 19:03:18 I was avoiding writing by looking at my May statistics, and one search string really stood out to me.
1 14 4.23% wine outlook
2 8 2.42% -
3 8 2.42% wine poems
4 5 1.51% wine poem
5 4 1.21% black chicken
6 4 1.21% giesen sauvignon blanc 2005
7 4 1.21% ideas for cool wine names
8 4 1.21% office 2007 wine
9 4 1.21% teens h-
10 3 0.91% couple hol-
11 3 0.91% i drink a bottle of wine a night
12 3 0.91% riedel pronunciation
13 3 0.91% teens holdin-
14 3 0.91% wine office 2007
15 2 0.60% acceptable tv
16 2 0.60% baby grapes
17 2 0.60% birthday quotes wine
18 2 0.60% black chicken wine
19 2 0.60% black chook how to serve
20 2 0.60% bramare malbec
It would be funny, had I not had so much wine last night…
Read more:Close
, Stats
Cheers to Ryan 2007-05-08 05:05:33 My friend Ryan rocks! I’ve mentioned before that not only does he help make Fogarty wine great, but he also makes impressive wine on his own label. Quick side note: when I’ve previously reviewed his wines, it has been misconstrued as not liking them. But it has been with complete admiration and honesty, which I think(hope) he appreciates.
However, he got all the validation he needs (for tonight anyway) because I just read in an e-mail from his wife that Ryan got BEST OF SHOW RED at the 2007 WineMaker International Amateur Wine Competiton. Not only that, but a Gold for his Cab and a Silver for his Barbera. Read more about it on Sara’s blog.
I told you Bonfire Vineyards was one to watch…
2007 WineMaker International Amateur Wine Competiton, Bonfire Vineyards
Read more:Cheers
Sipping Wine in San Mateo 2007-05-07 08:55:45 I gladly welcomed the suggestion of a trip to 750 ml in San Mateo
a few nights ago, as the visit marks another item I can check off my list of things to do/ places to go. And, I’d have to say, my best wine-tasting experience over the past couple weeks. Part shop, part tasting bar…the space is not large, with a few tables and less than 10 seats at the bar. I’m guessing it can get cramped when there’s a crowd, but this particular night was fine. I found it to be inviting, especially with the abundance of artwork on the walls. BK and I started by getting a few tastes from the Enomatic–the wine dispenser dishing out 24 (not run-of-the-mill) wines. We also ordered wine from the bar, which I actually enjoyed even more. One was a very nice 2005 Paul Mathew Pinot Noir from the Sonoma Coast: much more subdued than CA Pinot I’ve gotten used to– lighter in color, body, and alcohol–and its pure strawberry made me happy. Also my first Gruet:a spar Read more:San Mateo
Where Does This Garden Grow? 2007-05-11 17:24:31 Though I didn’t get around to talking about it in my last post about Moday’s adventures in wine tasting, we also spent some time at Ferrari-Carano in Healdsburg. There are actually two locations for winemaking; the other sits above Geyserville and focuses only on reds. The owners decided that with so many vineyards (surpassing 1400 acres), it would be best to give more concentrated attention to the wines to better ensure their quality. And while the wines are good, the gardens may be just as effective at drawing customers in. Rhonda Carano and her gardeners truly outdid themselves…five acres of footpaths, gazebos, waterfalls, statues, and bridges. One section included row upon row of roses in full bloom, and we even spotted a cork tree.
Right before going into the winery, a rather large boar almost blocked our way. If I recall, this fellow was modelled after a creature who ruined some of Rhonda’s flowerbeds…only to meet his demise. But the signpost Read more:Garden
Top 5 Reasons the Bay Area Rocks the Wine World 2007-05-10 06:35:56 1. Wineries are all over the place. You can drive to the north, south, or east, and within 2 hours, explore Napa, Sonoma, Russian River Valley, Santa Cruz Mountains, Livermore, Monterey, and those are just a few. Plus, the vineyards make for great scenery, as you drive along highways and backroads alike, charting the progress of the grapes.
2. Tastings are always going on somewhere. The big ones like ZAP, Rhone Rangers, and the SF Chronicle Wine Competition gather hundreds of wines under one roof, all for the spitter to enjoy at a vigorous pace of tasting. On a smaller scale, many wine shops and restaurants conduct tastings on a regular basis. Stores such as BevMo and K & L allow the shopper to sample certain wines prior to making purchases, thereby taking some of the uncertainty out of the equation.
3. Wine-focused restaurants abound. Whether it’s wine bars (check out 750 ml in San Mateo or Vino Locale in Palo Alto) or restaurants with impressive wine lists (favorites f Read more:Bay Area
, Reasons
, Rocks
, World
A Bit of Bubbly in J’s Bubble Room 2007-05-09 21:53:00 Monday my Irish friend, her family, and a few of us non-Irish had a grand time tasting up in Healdsburg. The first stop was J Vineyards, where the tax man among us had arranged for an introduction to The Bubble
Room and an amazing line-up of food and wine. Let me just start by saying that I wish I had one of those in my house! A table was ready for us, and Genny began bringing out wine glasses as we looked over the menu. While we waited, she let us sample J’s first ever still rose’ from free run Pinot Noir. I was impressed with its flavors of watermelon, lemon, and slight reminder of the cotton fields back home.
As for the food, the first sampling was Puget’s Sound Steamboat oysters on the halfshell with the 02 J Vintage Brut. The doughy lemon and pear went perfectly with the saltiness of the oysters, as always. The second pairing was rather unexpected, and I honestly didn’t think it would work. The 02 J Chardonnay was full of clove, pineapple, and mango.
Food & Wine Notes to Self 2007-05-15 08:51:56 Last week I had the great idea to make calamari. And by great idea, I mean I will never try it again. Without a deep fryer, it just doesn’t work. They were chewy from being in too long, and I still have burns on my face and arm…though they’re finally fading. Therefore, with the chaos of fighting oil splatters in a hot kitchen on an extra-warm evening, talking, and holding ice to my face while trying to eat, I didn’t take any notes on the Moet & Chandon White Star. I do recall, however, that it was exactly what I needed at that point, and it went down far too easily. I’ll have to get it again and pay better attention.
Meanwhile, here’s a recipe for the salad I also made to go with the Champagne, recreated in the style of the ’sensation salad’ at a restaurant where I worked during grad school. The bubbles were a good companion to its saltiness.
Sensation Salad:
Combine freshly minced garlic with a few generous pours of grapeseed o Read more:Notes
Break in Blogging (But Not Drinking) 2007-05-14 00:43:08 Readers and drinkers, I’m taking a break from the tea party to give you a little post (while I have access to a computer). And that post is to say I’m having technical difficulties and am not sure when they will be resolved. My power source is no longer working and the one I bought this morning was no good, so I cannot get to my pictures, etc.
I will do my best over the next couple days to find a way to bring you updates in wine reviews, food and wine pairings, etc.
Read more:Blogging
, Break
, Drinking
A Tea Party With No Tea 2007-05-17 17:41:53 Most Sundays you can find me pouring wine in the tasting room up on the mountain, dressed in Fogarty attire. This past Sunday, however, I got to put on my new red & white dress and sit down at a tea party with a group of lovely ladies. The weather was just right outside The Villa, with a cool breeze moving through our hair and the flowers on the table. The butler (who also doubles as Fogarty’s cellar rat) promptly filled my glass with sparkling wine, as we passed around the goodies. There were heart-shaped scones with raspberry jam, crab dip filled phyllo cups, a tower of cupcakes and tarts, and my favorite: little cucumber sandwiches with salmon mousse (which went especially well with the bubbly). I brought some of the TF Pinot Gris (sold out now, sadly), which went quite nicely with the almond chicken salad sandwiches.
Later we exchanged wrapped tea cups, about which I know nothing, though some of the other ladies were ooooing and ahhhhhing over Paragons and a Shelley Read more:Party
, Tea Party
Wine Blogging Wednesday 33 (Almost) 2007-05-16 19:18:28 Wine BloggingWednesday
got away from me this time. When picking up a bottle of wine after a long day of work, I knew there was more to it than just grabbing something from Languedoc-Roussillon but could not remember the specifics. Hopefully, Doktor Weingolb won’t be too hard on me because Trader Joe’s didn’t have any choices over $5. (That, and I usually adhere to the WBW rules very well….) Apparently, this southern region of France is known for producing wines of great value, with the $15-30 category representing the ideal range. It seems that many vineyards are passed down through families, and the wine-making techniques are simple and inexpensive. For example: using concrete containers instead of new oak barrels and bottling off-site.
The bottle that followed me home this time was 2005 Chapelle du Bois Syrah. Syrah comes in as the third most-planted grape, after Carignan and Grenache. Though the Languedoc produces the most Vin de Table, this particul Read more:Almost
, Wine Blogging
, Wine Blogging Wednesday
Not Your Typical Sparkling Red 2007-05-18 18:19:03 Readers and drinkers, everything seems to be just a little off these days. I was outside of the price range for Wine Blogging Wednesday, I was 2 days late with my wine column, and at a private tasting the other night, my normal banter with the crowd was constantly interrupted to be translated into Japanese. It seems appropriate, then, that the picture to the right is a little blurry and that the wine itself was not quite what I expected. BK wanted to share the NV Rymill “The Bee’s Knees” sparkling red from Coonawarra. He’d never had red bubbles before, though I may have mentioned once or twice that I adore them. This particular wine is a blend of 4 grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cab Franc, and Shiraz (in order of highest percentage to least). I have to say my first reaction was that it ‘tastes like a Cab,’ which stemmed from the fact it had more tannin and didn’t taste as rich as the red sparklers I’ve had in the past. I got coff
Chenin Blanc: California vs. France 2007-05-23 20:11:37 My tasting group was not the most organized affair this time. At the last meeting we chose a theme but never really decided on a date. Therefore, after throwing an e-mail out last week, only a few people followed through and we ended up changing it from Thursday to Monday. With the last-minute assignment and a not-so-common variety (Chenin Blanc), there was a bit of stress for some in finding a bottle. We still managed to survey seven different bottles: three from France
and four from California
.
Chenin Blanc is quite versatile, capable of exteme sweetness, sparkling versions, or fair-to-mediocre table wine. It has a long hisory in the Loire Valley, where it can sometimes have too much acidity, depending on ripeness. It seems the best versions there are sweet, with hints of honey and damp straw. The grape has gained great popularity in South Africa, sometimes referred to as Steen. Winemakers are striving to avoid that mediocrity that seems to come too easily to the grape. Califor
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