Category Archives: review

Wine Blogging Weds News: A “Sparkling” Round Up & “Singles Night” Announced

Tim Elliott of Winecast hosted last month’s Wine Blogging Wednesday #74 and posted his round-up earlier this week. In it, he notes that 19 bloggers participated tasting 39 wines in 8 countries. The least expensive wine was Albero’s Brut Cava ($8 at Trader Joes and at that price a favorite for me too that I almost tasted for this prompt!) and the most expensive sparkler was $22.50 – 8th Generation “Confidence” 2010. So go check it out!

Wine Blogging Wednesday #75 host Joe Roberts aka 1 Wine Dude and Playboy’s new wine dude suggests we have a “Singles Night”: “One of the most special aspects of wine is that I can connect you with a particular time (a vintage) and a particular place on earth (a vineyard). Few other foodstuffs can offer such magic.”

If you want to join us, here’s how to play according to Joe’s prompt on 1 Wine Dude:

  • Your mission is to procure a wine produced from grapes grown in a single vineyard, and tell the world about it on March 21st.
  • You can pick any wine style, made from any grape(s), hailing from any region of the world – go nuts, go obscure, go fun and wow us all with your smarties.
  • The only catch is that the wine’s grapes should come from a single vineyard. And look, we’re not nazis on this… so if you come close and get a wine made from two or three vineyard parcels, we’ll let it slide – the point is to get as close to a wine coming from one single plot of land as you can, to emphasize how what’s special about that place on Earth gets transmitted to you through that wine (yes… we’re talking terroirhere, people).On March 21st, leave a comment on 1WineDude.comor on the Wine Blogging Wednesday website, or on Facebook  or on  twitter using the hashtag #WBW75

As for me, right now I’m inclined to go local and do a single vineyard that’s in Ventura County. I’ve got a bottle of Ojai Vineyard’s Roll Ranch Syrah and I want to see if I can make a road trip up the hill to the vineyard for some spring photos. We haven’t had much rain this year around here but I am sure it will be beautiful.

In the meantime, this March I’m going to be discovering more about Lake County wines including the up and coming and very consciously “green” Shannon Ridge (speaking of which, they have a number of single vineyard varietals that might be fun for WBW #75!)

Then in April, I’ll be writing about Santa Barbara’s Zaca Mesa and wines you might to pair with your Easter dinner. I might even find time to get up there myself–it’s only about an hour drive from where I live.

So Happy Wine Wednesday! What will you be drinking tonight? We’re having one of my favorite dinners –seared tuna on a bed of fresh greens –which I love with silky Washington Merlot.

For tonight I have a 2008 Merlot from Buried Cane (part of Middleton Family Wines) which I found on sale for $3.50. The name refers to the Washington State wine country practice to protect grape vines from damaging cold by covering the low-growing vine canes with a mound of soil. “These buried canes can be unearthed after winter freezes pass, assuring a grape harvest in the following season,” they say. “The winery name Buried Cane is a tip-of-the-hat to our unique winegrowing home.”

This 90% merlot and 10% syrah blend is considered a value wine that usually retails for around $15; at $3.50 it’s a steal and I’m going back for more.  The wine is sealed with a easy opening screw cap and an easy mid-week wine alcohol % of 13.3. It has a nice rosy red color with a faint tinge of coral,  cherry and plum on the nose and palate plus some vanilla and cigar box. It’s mild with a nice finish and a hint of caramel.

Wine Predator Recruits Ima Zinner, Bacchus Schmacchus & Annie Any-Day

Because life is short and wine is best shared with good friends over fine food, I have decided to share the wealth, the wine, and the fun as well as the responsibilities of taking notes and helping me write Wine Predator posts with three good friends.

Annie, Dave, and Kathy have all joined me on numerous treks to Los Angeles for industry wine tasting as well as twitter tastings I’ve hosted here at the house on various occasions. These friends not only have a great appreciation of wine, but they are funny, witty, and have a flair for coming up with great descriptors for wines.

We celebrated our new venture last night by tasting five very different wines: NZ pinot noir, a French bordeaux, and three tawny ports–a 40, a 20, and a NV. As we tasted, we merely took notes; in the future we will also tweet as Art Predator and possibly do some youtubes for the Art Predator channel. We thought doing the videos in lingerie might get people more interested, but maybe someone is already doing that? Continue reading →

Boxed Wine Reviews & Pairings Part 1: Offerings from Octavin & Trader Joe’s

At 12:01am early Monday morning August 29, 2011, the gates to Black Rock City, home of the Burning Man Festival, will open, and some 50,000 people will pour in before the Festival ends on Monday September 5.

Which means that this weekend and in the coming week as people pack and prepare for camping on the playa , 40-50,000 people are buying copious amounts of alcoholic beverages.

Labor Day weekend is also a very popular time to go camping–it’s the last three day weekend of summer and summer weather!

To help my favorite winos with decisions about what to bring whether camping at Burning Man, mountains, lake or beach, I have 11 (that’s ELEVEN) boxed/bag in box/bag wines sitting on my counter which have tasted and I am ready and willing to share my expertise with you! From Octavin, I have a German riesling, a New Zealand sauvignon blanc, a red wine blend from Spain, and a Pinot Noir from France. From Carlo Rossi Founder’s Oak, I have a Merlot, a Cabernet, and a Chardonnay plus Chardonnays from Vella and Turning Leaf. Finally, from Trader Joe’s, I have a Chardonnay and an Australian shiraz.  And since boxed wine keeps for a month or more, I will be bringing these wines to Burning Man for you to taste too! I’ll also say a few words about Pepperwood Grove’s Big Green Box Wine.

I first realized how brilliant boxed wines are for outdoor adventures last November when I received four Big Green Box wines from  Pepperwood Grove and  I took the Old Vine Zin camping.

Boxed wines are really perfect for camping expeditions at Burning Man or elsewhere–they won’t break, you can use them for pillows, and when they’re empty they collapse down into nothing –or fill the bag inside with water, put it in the sun and then use the water for washing dishes or bathing!

In part one of this two part post, I’ll discuss the bag in box offerings from Octavin and Trader Joe’s; part 2 will include Big Green Box and Carlo Rossi Founder’s Oak.

And yes I am bringing these wines out to the playa so YOU can taste them! Check in at PLaya Info–we’ll be doing some tastings there most afternoons around 3-5pm. I’ll also post where and when we’ll be tasting.

Octavin R. Muller “Rabbit” Riesling from Germany

This “medium sweet” wine is best nice and cold (which will be a challenge on the playa!) It would pair well with a cheese plate before or after dinner or with various Asian or Indian spicy stir fries; it was great with a peanut satay sauce, chicken, and vegetables. Light, fresh and aromatic of fresh peaches and pears, it was fermented in stainless steel. Very pleasant, not too complex, slightly metallic finish. 3L box = 4 bottles of wine in the box for $24 or about $6 a bottle. A great value.

Octavin Silver Birch New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc

I really think think this NZ Sauvignon Blanc is an exceptional value. I really like NZ sauvignon blanc in general and I would definitely buy this wine and keep it in the fridge for those lunches or dinners when I’m having a salad and just want a small glass of wine with it. Do not taste it after the riesling though–it brings out a little too much of the gooseberry! Lots of bright citrus–lime, grapefruit– and green apple with a hint of nectarine. Here’s another post about this NZ Sauv Blanc and me. At Burning Man or at home, I’d pair this with salads as well as pesto and pasta (and raw oysters!) $24 for 3L (4 bottles). Continue reading →

PS I Love You: Let me count the ways!

This is part 2 of a 2 part series. Here’s Part 1: a-few-petite-sirahs-from-the-ps-i-love-you-symposium-tasting

It is unfortunate but true that people are typically unfamiliar with the marvels of Petite Sirah. Hence the need for a Petite Sirah advocacy group like PS I Love You and for events like Dark & Delicious.

I’m fortunate that I was turned on to Petite Sirah back in my days working at Ridge and that I put a bottle of Storrs PS away in the cellar and forgot about it for 10 years which allowed me to taste the beauty that PS can become.

I’m also grateful that I’ve been able to whet my palate and taste a lot of PS wine in the past six months, thanks to invitations from Jo Diaz to attend Dark and Delicious as well as the PS Symposium.

I hope that these notes will encourage YOU to go out and try out a Petite Sirah or two for yourself! And while you’re at it, pick up a bottle or two to lay down in the cellar for 10 years or so!

Here are the rest of the wineries represented at the Petite Sirah Symposium tasting Tuesday July 26 along with notes about some of them. Sorry I couldn’t taste, take notes, and write about them all!

  • Diamond Ridge Vineyards ~ Lake County
    Winemaker Clark Smith aka Grape Crafter (pictured) gave one of the PS Symposium’s enology presentations where he discussed the impact of various barrels–French, Hungarian, American, and neutral– on the same Petite Sirah and at the tasting, he provided us with samples of the various wines he made. Personally, I really liked the one in the Hungarian Oak–this was a no fooling around, leather and chains with some blueberry pie thrown in version of PS.  He also did a French oak that tasted familiar, and American oak which was a bit on the sweet side with a lot of vanilla and not as much fruit. Lake County is above the fog line but cooling lake breezes keep the grapes from cooking.
  • Don Sebastiani & Sons ~ Sonoma
    This Petite Sirah was the standout wine for me in a twitter tasting of The Crusher recent releases. In one of the tweets, I said it was  “like the vampire that takes you in the night!” The California State Fair Wine Competition gave it a double gold/Best of Class award. Continue reading →

Petite Sirahs From The PS I Love You Symposium Tasting: Part 1Wineries A-C

I usually avoid writing the kind of blog post that just lists a bunch of wines.

I like to tell stories.

And I think story telling is my strength.

But sometimes it is necessary to just resort to a few keys words to convey a story about wine when you’re trying to talk about many wines.

In this case, many bottles of wine–but they’re all Petite Sirah.

I am trying to remember if I’ve ever been to a tasting of one varietal like this other than Dark & Delicious which is also Petite Sirah and I’m scratching my head. I’ve been to New Zealand new release tastings where there was mostly sauvignon blanc and Pinot noir…but that wasn’t the point of the tasting.

I went away from Tuesday’s PS I Love You Petite Sirah symposium and tasting flabbergasted at how different these wines can be based on terroir and wine maker style and vintage and more. To suss out terroir a bit more, instead of organizing the tasting alphabetically, I’d love to attend a Petite Sirah tasting organized by AVA!

So here are the links to many of the participating Petite Sirah wineries, most of whom belong to PS I Love You, the Petite Sirah industry advocacy group organized by Jo Diaz, with a few of my notes from the wineries alphabetically from A-C. Continue reading →

What to eat with your Petite? Ideas from Ellen Landis at PS I Love You Symposium

After over three weeks on the road, and tasting wine in Idaho, Walla Walla Washington and the Willamette Valley in Oregon, I made it Monday July 25 to Jim Concannon’s birthday dinner to celebrate his 80th and Petite Sirah at the PS I Love You Petite Sirah Symposium Tuesday July 26 at Concannon Winery in Livermore. (Links to participating wineries and those discussed below the jump; here’s a blog post by Jo Diaz about the events. Pictured below is Jim Concannon’s son John honoring him; pictured above is Karen Leslie who sat next to me).

What to eat with your Petite? If a summer time dinner or lunch outside under the table grape arbor at Concannon is any indication, it’s barbeque tri-tip, chicken, and beans!

But there is more to life than barbeque, so at Tuesday’s Petite Sirah symposium, Ellen Landis, Sommelier, proprietor of Landis Shores Luxury Inn, and author of Ellen on Wine shared some of her ideas on which foods pair best with Petite Sirah. I tried valiantly to take notes which she spoke; unfortunately, many of them were lost when I lost my internet connection! But basically, her main point was:

Drink what YOU like.

Since there are different styles of Petite sirah, the question really is which style goes with which food.

A basic rule of thumb is to match or contrast–match heavy meals with heavier wine styles, match flavor profiles or contrast them. Avoid pairing delicate dishes (like sole) with a powerful wine like Petite.

Here are some specific ideas:

How to gain creaminess with Petite Sirah? Landis suggest beef stroganoff paired with Rock Wall 2009. She also had specific suggestions of which Petite Sirah would go best with beef or pork tenderloin. At lunch I sat with Rock Wall winemaker Shauna Rosenblum (and yes I will be blogging about her soon! What a great story!) and tasted her Rock Wall 2009 Gamble Ranch that afternoon. This wine retails at $30 and is very rich and creamy in a cream soda or root beer float kind of way, very spicy, maple syrup, and chocolate malt.

Ellen Landis noted that the French pair red wines with fish–so don’t be afraid! She says try a blackened salmon with a PS; Ellen paired hers with a fruity Michael David PS which is 50% PS with 50% Petite verdot.

While most of us think of Petite Sirah as going with meat, vegetarians can enjoy PS with eggplant parmagiana with a variety of petite sirah styles. PS stands up to the fullness of the sauce and the creamy mozzarella allows the tomato sauce to work well and not clash.

Cheeses with Petite Sirah are great as a dessert course. For most palates, the wine should be as sweet as the dessert Continue reading →

Weekend Wine Warriors: #SauvBlanc Friday, Santa Barbara Nat Hist Museum Sat

YOU’RE INVITED FRIDAY June 24 2011:

“Please join us online, all day, from any time zone on Friday, June 24, 2011 to raise a glass of Sauvignon Blanc. By searching for conversations online mentioning #SauvBlanc you can see what the conversation is all about. By adding #SauvBlanc in your own online posts, you are PART of the conversation. Be a part of the wine tasting too – open a bottle (or several) of Sauvignon Blanc and let everyone know what you think, what food you enjoy along side the wine, what occasions are ideal for the wine, your favorite memories of the wine…it’s all relevant, it’s all fun!”

For Sauvignon Blanc Day, we enjoyed a 2009 Brancott Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand. Lots of lovely acidity and citrus, grapefruit, lime, lemon, a hit of white peach and nectarine, a screw top, and reasonable 12.5% alcohol.Widely available at a grocery store or restaurant near you for under $15; I found it on clearance for $7. I opened it on Wednesday and it was still in great shape by Friday.

I’m especially fond of this wine with arugala pesto so in honor of Sauvignon Blanc Day, my husband stuffed then grilled organic chicken breasts with oyster mushrooms, asparagus and my homemade arugala, rosemary and basil pesto with pine nuts and organic olive oil. On the side, I prepared a salad of organic arugala, basil, and cherokee tomatoes, all fresh from the farmers market, with fresh mozzarella and pine nuts. They all played well together!

June 25 will be quite a day for Santa Barbarians! Saturday is the HUGE Solstice Parade. Wildly decorated people will take over State Street and dance their way from one end to the other, concluding at a park where people can see the floats, dance to live music, and check out vendors. It goes on until 4pm but wine enthusiasts will bug out at 2pm and drive up the hill to the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum because YOU’RE INVITED SATURDAY June 25:

Saturday, June 25, 2011 2:00–5:00 PM
Tickets are still available day of/at the door $95.

“SWIRL, SIP, & SAVOR…wines from more than 70 Central Coast premier wineries complemented with savory and sweet delectable delights at the Santa Barbara Wine Festival™. Escape for an afternoon and enjoy the refreshing ambiance of being in nature as you take pleasure in tantalizing tastings of food and wine. This is a must-do summertime favorite and the wine festival you cannot miss. Proceeds benefit the Museum’s exhibits and science education programs for school children.”

The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History is a wonderful venue and a chance to mix it up with the beautiful people of Santa Barbara for a good cause–my son and another mom and her two boys were just up there a month ago to see the butterflies, the exhibits, the creek, and the raptors in rehab. The 70 Central Coast premier wineries and restaurants presenting savory and sweet delectable delights are all top notch. This is one classy event!

Read more about The Santa Barbara Wine Festival at the SB Museum of Natural History  on their blog. We were going to be out of town so I didn’t get myself a ticket–now we’re going to be here and I have to admit that, as much as I’d like to go, $95 is out of this Wine Predator’s budget!