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December 2 2007
I was a bit disappointed in October when, based on some business travel and a dearth of Portugese wine in my locale, I had to sit on the sidelines for the Catavino-hosted Portugese table wine themed Wine Blogging Wednesday.
Alas, as the cliché goes … better late than never …
As a form of a make-good to myself, I picked up the Catavino blogger-pack from Domaine547.com.
I’m putting together my own blogger-pack in conjunction with Domaine547.com in an upcoming month, and the idea is a very good one—a wine blogger makes a few wine recommendations (generally three wines that total $50 or less in order size) and Jill sells it as a three-pack with some promotional support from the blogger. The Blogger sampler packs gives wine consumers a chance to try wines that are different and not widely available –at all- and it gives the blogger an opportunity to highlight wines he/she has particular knowledge or appreciation for.
The Catavino pack features three beauties:
The 2006 Famega Vinho Verde, a 2003 Esporao Trincadeira, and the 2003 So Touriga Nacional. Rea, Companhia Velha, SA
I pulled the cork on the ’03 Esporao Trincadeira not certain what to expect. I let it rest for a week or so to offset any potential bottle shock and as the cork slid out of the bottle I distinctly remarked to my wife, “I hope this is good, I’m not in the mood for a crappy wine.” The comment had less to do with the actual wine—it could have been any random bottle that I picked up—and had to do with a recent bad spat of luck in opening up some clunkers. No problems, here. I was not disappointed. The Esporao is a delicious wine.
Produced by Herdade do Esporao, the Trincadeira grape is indigenous to Portugal and thrives in hot weather, with poor soil. This wine, coming from the Alentejo region of Portugal is a stunner that will open your eyes to table reds of the country and the region.
Thanks to Domaine547 for coming up with such a fun idea for the wine blogger packs and special thanks to Catavino for promoting the wines of Portugal and picking out and sharing such a delightful wine.
My tasting note can be found here.
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November 13 2007
I’m not a member of the Rhone Rangers (a consumer “sidekick” in their parlance), at least not yet. I am, however, loosening up my wallet to find more and more American Rhone varietal wines.
In my mind, the hottest action in the California wine market is the Central Coast area and Paso Robles in particular. This is no revelation, many people share this sentiment. One of the interesting things you can find is quality at a range of price points, which isn’t necessarily true of Napa, Sonoma and elsewhere where neighbors hold the line on price (that is in the event that they’re not trying to one-up them).
Over this past weekend, I did a back-to-back tasting of two Central Coast blends comprised of Rhone varietals and was pleasantly surprised at the quality of both, exhibiting a ‘sense of place’ while also being fruit-forward with backbone and above all, delicious.
The ’02 Tablas Creek Cotes de Tablas at about $22 dollars is a remarkable value, relative to a Chateauneuf du Pape at $40 or above. The non-vintage Rabbit Ridge Allure de Robles exhibits less refinement and more of a California style, but that’s hardly a drawback when the wine can be picked up for $11 bucks or less and around $6 if you’re near a California Trader Joe’s.
Both are excellent wines, balanced, with nice acidity and certainly give one a reason to pause long enough to re-consider the prevailing notion that California is sliding down into an abyss of sameness with high-alcohol wines that are not food friendly.
My reviews are below.
‘02 Tablas Creek Cotes de Tablas
NV Rabbit Ridge Allure de Robles
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November 1 2007
Have you ever had a glass of wine made from the rare Bukettraube grape? Me neither. Should you try it? Absolutely. Can you find it in the states? Yes.
Introducing the ’07 Seven Sisters Odelia Bukettraube imported by Heritage Link Brands. Bottlenotes is the online retailer.
Bukettraube is a delicious aperitif or digestif-style white wine with residual sugar; this is the kind of wine that delights the open-minded and converts the staunch wine lover who scowls at any wine that isn’t bone-dry.
This beauty has balanced acidity and a complexity that surprises and a flavor profile that is reminiscent of a Muscat on the nose and a Muscat and Chenin Blanc blend.
The grape itself is rarely seen outside of Germany and South Africa and with a limited drinking window, this one is a rare treat.
An even rarer treat? Quality and interest that won’t break the bank. The wine is just $12.99 at retail.
I’m offering a double-whammy of a full disclosure as Selena from Heritage Link Brands is a customer of mine at my place of employment and I have been working with Bottlenotes and Alyssa Rapp, an advertiser on the site here at Good Grape. That fact completely aside, I would heartily recommend this wine as an incredible value. And I’ll offer a Good Grape double-money back guarantee. If you buy this and don’t like the wine, send me an email and I’ll mail you a check for $25 bucks.
This vino would be good in the spring with a fresh fruit plate. It would be good in the summer with a salad. It would be good in the fall with cheese plate, post dinner. It would be good in the winter as an evening sipper as you wistfully recall summer memories gone by.
If the wine isn’t enough, then the story angle of Heritage Link Brands should be. Rumor has it the founder of this exclusive importer of the wines from the continent of Africa, Selena Cuffe, is going to be the cover subject of a major business magazine in the next month, in addition to her recent feature in Time magazine. Her model of importation and her civic engagement with indigenous producers is to be highly commended.
Commendable for her own merits is entrepreneur Alyssa Rapp from Bottlenotes. You can find the Bukettraube at Bottlenotes here.
Excellent wine, a great back-story, a varietal you’ve never had, two strong female leaders in the wine industry, and a double-money back guarantee from Good Grape. What else do you need?
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October 30 2007
In the pantheon of wine industry luminaries, there is no way you can’t call Jess Jackson one of the leading lights. He doesn’t have the mythology of Mondavi, but just the same he’s cut a large national profile with his everyday drinkers like the ubiquitous Kendall-Jackson Vintners Reserve Chardonnay.
Clearly Jackson is a figure that through his own iconoclasm has created the very antithesis of just that notion—a model that others have followed: wine, a variable product, wrought variable through artful blending. Yellowtail and other wines at higher price points all owe a debt of gratitude to this model championed by Jackson and modeled from other consumer goods like McDonald’s and Starbucks.
In fact, a recent LA Times articles makes that same exact analogy in a nice piece that examines Jackson’s influence, albeit at a very high level. And, separately, In a quote that is simple in its beauty, Jackson is quoted as saying regarding his entry into the wine business, “I was attracted by the lifestyle. I wanted to get away from law and become a farmer ...”
Silently, a nation of wine drinkers nod their head in agreement.
You can read the article here.
For my review of the ’03 Kendall-Jackson Grand Reserve Merlot, please hit this link.
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October 29 2007
As I walked past end-cap display after end-cap display at a couple of different wine retailers, it dawned on me that Castle Rock and Concannon are both vying to be America’s house brand.
It makes some sense, if this is indeed either of their intent. Both have polished, sophisticated winery packaging and positioning in the market. Both are in the $9 to $12 price range and both have a well-represented line-up of red wine varietals. The Concannon has an incredibly heavy bottle that speaks to that intangible quality of “heft = quality” that can sometimes sucker you and Castle Rock has a classically stylized label that reeks of class in an American bourgeoisie kind of way.
And, more importantly, there is a place in the market for them, as wine consumers trade-up to more expensive wine—the general population seems more inclined to pick up the $11.99 bottle than the ‘same old, same old’ at $7.99.
In this regard, both of these wines deliver based on intended market and quality to price. Certainly, you won’t look deep into the glass for the answers to all things mysterious, but you won’t come away disappointed for having pulled the cork.
My reviews of the respective Cabernets for Castle Rock and Concannon are below.
‘05 Castle Rock Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
‘04 Concannon Selected Vineyards, Central Coast, Cabernet Sauvignon
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