Category Archives: Wines I Like

Youth in Revolt: Beaujolais Nouveau

DuBeouf and Drouhin 2012 Beaujolais Nouveau

DuBeouf and Drouhin 2012 Beaujolais Nouveau

Tonight, while most of us are our beds quietly dreaming or, if you’re like me ~ drooling on your pillow, cases of Beaujolais Nouveau are being crated up and shipped hundreds of thousands of miles to worldwide destinations. With the release at 12:01am on the third Thursday of November, the frenzy begins to get this extremely young wine to market. The release is highly anticipated and lauded, traditionally, to celebrate the end of harvest.

Beaujolais Nouveau is the result of a quick reap, fast fermentation and whirlwind bottling. Grapes are generally hand-picked helping to ensure that they are the healthiest with unbroken skins. The must is pressed a mere three days post-harvest. It’s hard to think that you’d get any kind of product at all worth drinking. And some would sniff that what you’re getting psyched for is little better than fermented grape soda. Yet Beaujolais can be surprising. Even in a wine so young, it can have some chops. The 2009 vintage, in particular, trashed the reputation that un-aged wine was merde. There’s no denying,  it runs the risk of being severely compromised by less than subtle chaptalization, and a hurried process to get the product out to consumers. Sometimes, satisfying the masses with high quantities of wine can negatively effect the quality of the wine. That said, I predict many will jump on the Beaujolais party train this weekend, quaff thoroughly and not particularly care about how quickly it took to produce.

Beaujolais is produced from the Gamay varietal; a cross between a Pinot Noir and Gouais, a white from Central Europe. It thrives in the granite laden, acidic soils of Beaujolais. In the days of old, Beaujolais celebrations were local events until the French government found out and wanted to end the party at 11 by putting restrictions in place in 1938.  By 1951, the restrictions were revoked by the Union Interprofessional des Vins de Beaujolais (UIVB) who instituted a November 15th release date. In 1985, the date was changed to the third Thursday of November, which ties it to the weekend ~ thus only ending the party when the police show up to take you in for a drunk and disorderly.

There are four premier types of Beaujolais:

Nouveau/Primeau ~ the youngest of the Beaus ~ very fruit forward with a cherry-berry-floral vibe that should be served lightly chilled and within 6 months of release.

Villages ~ This one can be  has more spice/pepper on the palate and can be cellared between 2-3 years.

Blanc ~ The tall blonde from the North Beaujolais district, it gets its depth from 3 types of soil: granitic, siliceous-clay, limestone-clay. Also an early drinkable.

Cru ~ From one of the finest regions of Beaujolais, it is the creme de la creme. It has the highest character and complexity and can be cellared the longest. Jancis Robinson has said that she enjoyed one that had been cellared 40 years. Cru can be confusing because it seldom says Beaujolais on the label. To find Cru, you’ll be looking for Broully, Chiroubles, Fleurie, St~Amour, to name just a few. Most Beaujolais is produced by Georges DuBoeuf who distribute much of the 65 million bottles that will hit the shelves in 24 hours time. Although, according to Randy Ruitenberg( via Bloomberg Businessweek), this year’s production of Beaujolais and Champagne will be down about 20% due to weather damage and disease.

So what does it taste like? Since there is so little time between harvest, press, bottling and pour into your glass, it will be fruit forward with very little tannin; simple and relatively immature. It pairs very well with lighter fare such as turkey, so is an ideal choice for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Many liken a mature Beaujolais to a Pinot Noir, which makes sense. If you like big, beefy, tannic reds, you might want to pass. However, it’s a great transitional choice for white wine drinkers who want to try a reds but are intimidated by the heavy duty varietals.

I’m all set to try my 2012 vintage. I bought a DuBoeuf and a Joseph Drouhin to compare. And I’ll let you know whether they can hold their own against my roast turkey with all the trimmings.

Cheers!

Night of the Vampire

A couple of years ago, I tried Vampire wine ~ I don’t even remember what variety it was. I wasn’t too sure about it; the taste was metallic, the mouthfeel a bit thick and viscous. It was a little like…blood. Or at least how you might imagine blood might taste.

Did rip my bodice? Not exactly. It wasn’t the worst red I’d ever had but I wasn’t sure it was a wine to constantly search the catacombs for, either. Rather than write it off as a gimmick wine, I thought I’d again check out a couple of newer offerings ~ a lot can change in two years. I scared up my friends Shelly and Terri to sample with me. And, yes, creatures of the night ~ that was a Halloween pun, so raise your goblet and drink.

On the menu:  A ’10 Cabernet Sauvignon and a ’10 Pinot Noir.

Vampire Vineyards '10 Cabernet Sauvignon and '10 Pinot Noir

Vampire Vineyards ’10 Cabernet Sauvignon and ’10 Pinot Noir

We cracked open the Pinot first, moving from the lighter wine to full-bodied.  The first pour was without any aeration because I wanted the girls to experience firsthand the difference. It was a clear and bright ruby with predominant jammy top notes. As expected, it had a light, thin mouthfeel, and, overall, was fairly pleasant. Being drawn to a more full-bodied wine, Shelly wasn’t a huge fan but Terri found it easier to drink. When we poured the second taste through the Rabbit, it became much more complex and enjoyable. Pairing it with a creamy Brie and fruit brought even more dimension to what started out as a fairly basic Pinot.

The Cabernet was deep blood-red in color and beefier; everything you’d expect from a Cab. It had a distinct, almost heavy spice vibe to it before aerating and the mouthfeel was velvety with a bit of bounce. After we Rabbit-ized the wine, it softened,gradually developing a flavor that became more sophisticated. Shelly mentioned that she really enjoyed it the more she sipped.Terri found that by aerating the cab, she was able to enjoy it without any reflux-like side effects. We paired it with a sharp Wisconsin cheddar, sweet peppers and tomato.

I was impressed that the wine I’d sampled a couple of years before was not like what we tasted tonight. Overall, we found the Cabernet to be a willing beauty that we could definitely sink our teeth into.

I wanted to take this moment to give credit where it’s due and thank my daughter, Andrea, for all of her hard work producing the first video for The Wine Student blog. I’ll be posting it right after this and, I’ll keep my fingers crossed that it’ll load!

Love you. Now go to bed!

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

Mangia! Mangia!

The Beautiful 07 Ruffino Santedame Chianti

The Beautiful 07 Ruffino Santedame Chianti

It’s a drab, rainy Tuesday night in the Cleve, and I wanted to pair my weekly pasta dish with something special. Looking in our  wine rack, I found an 07 Ruffino Santedame Chianti. I’ve always enjoyed Ruffino in the past, and thought I’d pair it with my freshly made tomato basil sauce with (leftover) meatloaf crumble ~ yes, I’m frugal and, yes, it’s better than it might sound.

The bright, rich color, as it poured into my glass, was very inviting but the thing that was most intriguing was that I couldn’t place what was going on with the nose. It smelled of a lovely perfume, which was a new vibe for me.  And it was bugging me that I couldn’t quite place it. Finally, it dawned on me: It was rose. And it wasn’t the kind of rose you associate with the cheap stuff; it was the light-scent-that-delicately-wafts-on-the-air-of-a-summer-breeze rose.

The mouthfeel was on the grippy side with a velvety finish and the predominant flavor was of a bold, sour cherry. The sour of the cherry beautifully counterbalanced the savoury of the sauce that made the pairing really terrific. For a back- to- basics dinner the night after summer’s last long weekend, a few fireworks still managed to pop.

 

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

Crabby night

The Lovely Lugana

The Lovely Lugana

Tonight we dined on crab. It’s a treat we don’t have very often. And we don’t have it often because it’s somewhat pricey and also it makes my feet swell. I wrote swell, right? I’d hate for you to think it made my feet smell. It doesn’t. Anyway. HubbyDoug came back from his most recent trip to Italy with a lovely ’11 Le Quaiare Lugana. Wait. A white wine? It’s true, I’ve spent much of this blog writing about red wine and, for the most part, we do prefer the reds. Yet this white was something special. And it needed to be paired with something just as special. I think what I enjoyed most about this wine was that it had a light, playful grape and honey essence on the nose. It tasted of delicate apple that seemed to enhance the light, salty brine of the crab while adequately cutting through the fattiness of the butter. To paraphrase Cole Porter it was de-lovely!

Cheers!

 

2012 Cleveland Wine Festival ~ Sun, fun and wine

I didn’t think we’d make it downtown. The forecast was shaping up to be rain with a chance of more rain. But the thing about Cleveland weather is what might be happening in one ‘burb might not be happening in another. On the other hand, there’s nothing worse than trying to quaff when your glass is filling with rain instead of wine. As luck would have it, when we arrived at the Giant Eagle Cleveland Wine Festival at Voinovich Park, the clouds parted and we were treated to great sunshine, a warm lake breeze and some interesting wine to sample.

Cheers!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Throwing Caution ~ and a little Cab Sauv ~ to the Wind

Tudal Family Winery '07 Cab auv

Tudal Family Winery ’07 Cab Sauv

When you begin to collect wine, you sometimes find there is a new dilemma: to drink or not to drink. You ask yourself; “does this occasion really warrant opening this nice (and possibly expensive) bottle of  blah blah blah?” Is it wine-worthy?? I found myself with just such a dilemma tonight. I’d gone to my local grocer, had the butcher make up a nice  flank steak Florentine and purchased some roma tomatoes and fresh basil.   We’d all been very busy lately, barely seeing each other, so tonight would be the night we’d sit down and have a long, relaxed dinner together. The wine, I thought, needed to reflect the casual importance of the occasion so I chose the ’07 Tudor Family Winery Cabernet Sauvignon. If you remember from a few posts before, we’d sampled it at the summer wine event. And it was one of the higher-priced wines of the evening. But I remember being told once that wine was meant to be enjoyed. So enjoy it, we would.

The colour was a deep ruby; dark but clear and there was no visible sediment. The nose had the bold essence of blackberry and it was delightfully fruit forward ~  rich black cherry with a nice smoky taste on the finish. When paired with the fresh tomato and basil combination, it came alive with much more depth than I expected.

Steak Florentine with Roma Tomatoes and Basil ~ yum!

Steak Florentine with Roma Tomatoes and Basil ~ yum!

I savored this wine ~ and the slower – paced  dinner and evening I had with my family. It was a wine well spent.

Cheers!

Easy, eh?

wine in my garden

wine in my garden

After an extremely busy few weeks, I wanted to take a few moments to sit back, relax and enjoy.  I’d travelled back to my home and native land of Canada to visit family and have been helping my daughter as she finishes out the waning weeks of school. What that really means is I’ve been chauffeuring her all over the greater Cleveland area with more urgency than usual.

Today, I stole away to my garden; no book, no iPod, no phone. It was just me and the trees…and a glass of wine. I chose  a ’10 Matthew Fritz Pinot Noir which provided just the right amount of warmth on a cool-ish day. The big, bold cherry essence  was foremost on my palate and after a few sips, it transitioned nicely to a finish of sweet molasses. It wasn’t an overly complex wine but nicely straightforward; what you tasted at the start was generally what you’d have at the end. Sometimes, the less complex things are, the better.

This break provided some valuable time to collect my thoughts and get myself ready for some bigger changes on the horizon. Where those changes will take me, I’m not sure. What I do know is that my garden, and a good supply of wine, will always help me regroup, recharge and renew.

Cheers!

Summer Lovin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo

 “Summertime is always the best of what might be.” ~ Charles Bowden

Friday’s summer wine feast highlighted a few of the best of what is to come this summer.  Shelly and I had two hours to sample as many of the fine wines as we could. It proved to be fairly tricky since there were seven tables with five wines each. Five food stations with samples of cheeses, main course offerings and dessert were available to navigate along with the wine.

David fromVintage Wines said that Riesling was going to be one of the big trends this summer and we paired the Richter Estate Riesling with samples of baked, breaded Hake in pesto sauce. I’d never tried Hake, but it proved to be a tasty yet light fish. The flavorful delicacy of the fish and basil from the pesto brought out the floral and citrus vibe of the wine. As for the reds, the Tamarack Red Blend was pleasant enough at first taste but as the sample wound down, Shelly found it became more bitter with a vinegar aftertaste she wasn’t really into ~ so in the chum bucket it went.

On to our next pick of the night: an 07 Tudal Cabernet Sauvignon. Cab Sauv always brings to mind colder temps and a hearty beef dinner. Jack from Wine Trends suggested pairing it with the tricolor tortellini salad and kale with blueberry quinoa. I didn’t think it would pair well at all but found it to have a subtle strawberry on the nose; fruit forward jam essence, peppery in the middle and a finish of soft caramel. The mild spice of the tortellini and sweetness of the kale quinoa was beautifully offset by the complexity of this Cab and it was surprisingly refreshing. Only 490 cases of this vintage were produced so it was a rare and wonderful find. At a price point of 39.99, I thought I’d splurge for a wine that was toe-curl worthy.

We did our best to use our limited time wisely but didn’t get through all the stations before closing time. Yet with the rush, we still managed to get to the cassata cake. Even when you’re at your busiest, there’s always time for cake.

It was great to experience a tasting like this; like speed dating but with wine. And while we couldn’t sample everything, we did come away with a couple of good numbers to hook up with for the summer.

Cheers!

Summer Lovin’

I think it’s safe to say that old man winter has put on his hat and taken his crotchety, blustery self back to where he came from. To celebrate,  I’m going tonight, with my friend Shelly, to the Summer Wine and Beer Feast at Heinen’s in Strongsville.

It’ll be nice to put on my white jeans (gasp! before Memorial Day and everything) and see what is trending this season for summer wine fun.

I’ll post some pics and our picks of the night’s offerings.

Cheers!