My Half Full Glass - November 29th, 2012

So, I finally got this new weekly column thing calibrated. It's amazing what a vacation and  a holiday can do to a screw up a schedule! This new column is where I will feature notable beverages that I've enjoyed within the last couple of weeks.

Florida Beers

During a week-long trip to the Orlando, Florida area I sampled a number of Florida beers and found several that I would highly recommend. I sampled in a number of settings, on draft at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival and Big River Grille, then from bottles back at my vacation place and at the Bahama Breeze.  

In general Florida brewers are embracing lighter styles (lager, pilsner, wheat beers) but based on the climate and cuisine, I see this working well. I was able to taste a range of beers, including several IPAs and brown beers in addition to Pilsner, Lager and Wheat beers.

At the Epcot Food & Wine Festival the Florida Beer Company's Key West Southernmost Wheat was my favorite amongst it, the Florida Lager and Devil's Triangle IPA also from the same producer. Light, with a slightly creamy texture, the crisp finish and light body of this beer would make it versatile with a range of local foods. The Devil's Triangle IPA was good, but the bitterness felt a little forced. I'll share more on the Epcot Food & Wine Festival in a separate post.

I stopped at World of Beer in Clermont, Florida and selected six singles to take home to share with a friend. The photo below shows the lineup which included the Florida Brewing Key West Sunset Lager, OBP LLC Orange Blossom Pilsner, Holy Mackerel Special Golden Ale, Florida Brewing Swamp Ape, Cigar City Brewing Jai Alai IPA and Cigar City Brewing Maduro Brown Ale.

All the beers were well made and plenty drinkable. The Sunset Lager is pretty straightforward and didn't garner much comment. The Orange Blossom Pilsner, one of two of the beers brewed under contract in SC, was nice blend of a wit style beer with honey. It smelled and tasted like oranges with some honey notes in the finish. The Holy Mackerel Golden Ale was an exceptional drinker. A Belgian beer all the way, it was a bit yeasty, spicy and fruity. Lively and super drinkable. The Swamp Ape was my favorite. A sweeter IPA, similar to DFH 90 I'd reckon, it was smooth, hoppy and so delicious! Both of the Cigar City beers were very well polished, but the Maduro Brown Ale won the face off. I had this beer before the two other brown beers I enjoyed next, and it was the best non-pale ale so far. Rich, nutty and full on the palate. It isn't a huge beer so you could drink a few to make you real happy!

The Big River Grille & Brewpub on Disney's Boardwalk is a brewpub/restaurant owned by the same group that operates Rock Bottom and Gordon Biersch. Their holiday beers were on tap and we checked out both the Winter Brown Ale and Winter's Nip Holiday Bock after a relaxing walk of the boardwalk and adjacent resorts. The Winter's Nip Bock is a fantastic, moderately malty brown beer with hints of spice and banana in the nose. Definitely a nice warmer for those cool Florida winter days. I could drink way too many of these!

At the Bahama Breeze I paired Orlando Brewing's Organic Blonde Ale with the Mahi tacos for lunch. Definitely a great combination. The beer on its own is flavorful, dry with hints of citrus in the finish. Perfect with lighter fare.

Thanksgiving Wine

What wine to pair with Thanksgiving is always a sporting topic for the wine media to attend to this time each year. I've done it in several recent rotations (2008, 2010, 2011), but opted not to in 2012. There is no "right" or "perfect" answer to "what wines do I pair with Thanksgiving dinner?" and exactly who graces your table and what kind of mood everyone is in is much more of a concern than the wine. But, this year what I did select to have on the table for my family meal was quite successful and as a result worth sharing.

Close de la Roilette, Cuvée Tardive 2011 Fleurie

The review for the Clos de la Roilette, Cuvée Tardive 2011Fleurie from Jancis Robinson made the rounds late in October and I was curious. With so much love showered on this wine, "I'm in love" and "Yum, yum, yum" as just two examples, I figured I had little if anything to lose on a couple bottles. I found them for around $35 with shipping from Flat Iron Wines in New York, and got ahead of the season and had my wine in hand two weeks before the holiday.  Flat Iron is only stocking magnums of the 2011 right now, but after tasting this wine I can't see why that would be a losing proposition either!

Beaujolais for Thanksgiving, how stereotypical for me! Yes, it did work out that way. I felt this wine would make for a pleasant drinking experience for Margot and I in that setting. I don't always expect those I share wine with to say anything at all about a particular bottle so bringing something for me to pay attention to makes plenty of sense. This wine is precisely dry and focused. The ripe fruit aromas and flavors don't feel forced and come off full, yet fresh. There is a particular minerality to this wine, and I also felt a bit of spice or herb in the finish was not standard/everyday Beaujolais. It was easy drinking, smooth and had a gentle tannic bite in the finish.

With the onslaught of holiday table flavors this wine did admirably, pairing best with a squash and mushroom tart that also had melted cheese on top. The flavor combination in that dish matched the fruit/earth combo in the wine better than everything else. Margot loved this wine and I'd recommend it highly to others. Don't buy all the magnums from Flat Iron before I get to order some though!

Wiemer Late Harvest Riesling

For dessert, which was apple or squash pie of course, I paired the Hermann J. Wiemer Select Late Harvest Riesling dessert wine. We've had this wine several times and the massive flavors of sweet fruits and tart citrus go great with dessert. All the glasses were promptly emptied.

Cheers!

Jason

Veins Full of Riesling

Great prices on fine wine, also see our quality Scotch selection.

( We all had veins full of Riesling after this tasting! )

If one could overdose on Riesling I'd bet I have made a pretty good run at it in the last year. After three trips, samples from several producers and four virtual tastings of Finger Lakes Rieslings I must have tasted at least 150 different bottlings from several dozen producers. Add to that the Rieslings that have shown up in the Empire State Cellars club shipments and I've been drinking Finger Lakes Riesling AT LEAST monthly since this time back in 2011.

All of that experience doesn't make me an expert though. My Finger Lakes Riesling vintage experience only spans 2008 to 2011, with the majority of my tastings from the 2009s and 2010s. While 2009 and 2010 were definitely different growing seasons, the limited perspective a focus on just these two these years offers is very much a place to start. I have learned a few things however.

Structural acidity is a term you might hear bandied about for some types of wines, with well made dry Rieslings being one of those types. I've had a few German Rieslings in my wine drinking life, but never enough to really understand what this term could mean. Try enough dry Rieslings from the Finger Lakes and guarantee you will get it firsthand. A robust thread of acidity is a hallmark for the best Finger Lakes Rieslings, even the sweeter styles that benefit from the balancing affect it has. These wines are great because the acidity defines, structures and holds the fruit and minerality in place as well as giving purpose to the finish. With food the acidity in many of the Finger Lakes Rieslings really allows the wines to shine. Paired with cheeses, savory dips, salads, chicken, pork as well as moderately sweet desserts, these wines can help make the sum total greater than the parts. Just last night I was enjoying the Keuka Lake Vineyards Falling Man 2009 Dry Riesling with Ocean Spray gummy fruit snacks. As silly as this sounds, you'd be surprised at how the acidity provided an excellent counter balance to the sugar, making the fruit flavors pop.

The Riesling grape is a freaking chameleon! This statement comes from tasting experiences where I came in contact with many different flavors and textures but also from listening to growers & producers from the region talk about how Riesling rides the waves of the weather better than other grapes. As I tasted through the region I came in contact with Rieslings that project lemon, orange, pineapple, apple, pear, peach, melon, apricot, plum, tropical fruits, flowers, herbs, petrol and several types of minerality. That pretty much runs the gambit for white wine aromas and flavors, and it really speaks to the diversity that is available in fruit and the different winemaking approaches being applied in the region.

These Rieslings shouldn't take crap from anyone. Riesling has a mixed perception in the wine world. So what of it? Yes, there still are many volume produced sweet Rieslings out there that are often a gateway wine for new drinkers. These wines aren't typically flawed, but aren't overly exciting either. I've had them, and I have good memories from my early consumption days when these wines were the drink of choice. Maybe these wine make up some of the light beers of the wine world. Some people graduate. But marring a whole segment of wine because of a few homely examples is ridiculous, and the Finger Lakes Rieslings prove this. The best of these wines are well made, delicious, offering plenty of nuance for wine lovers AND simple pleasure those who just drink wine casually. So next time somebody mentions Riesling make you sure you listen long enough to find out which ones they are referring too. You might be pleasantly surprised!

The most recent opportunity I had to taste Rieslings from the Finger Lakes was a virtual tasting organized to celebrate Riesling Hour, the official launch of the 2011 vintage.

My wife and I hosted a tasting at home before the Twitter event began, providing both some background education and a tasting opportunity for friends. In addition to the four sample bottles I received I also lined bottles of Riesling from France, Germany and two non-2011 bottles from the Finger Lakes. The way I saw it the style and vintage comparison would add dimension for my friends who for the most part are new to wines from the Finger Lakes region.

The samples included the Wagner Dry, Three Bothers Zero Degrees Dry, Fulkerson Semi-Dry and GlenoraMedium-Sweet Rieslings, all from 2011. The self-selected bottles included the Trimbach Reserve 2008, Dr. Zenzen Kabinett 2008, Ravines Dry 2009 and the Anthony Road MRS 2009.

A big thank you is due the Finger Lakes Wine Alliance for the media packet, samples and for organizing the Riesling Hour tastings again this year.

I started off with a review of some of the materials from the media packet, including bits on the geography, climate, history, styles and the IRF scale, all from the slideshow that I played on the big TV. As my friends got to tasting the wines I could see the neurons firing. Approaching wine tasting educationally and with your senses peeled isn't something that non-wine aficionados really do. Consumption of any foodstuffs with a focus on sensory experience seems like a lost art in America, but like so much else there are plenty of excuses offered why people don't have the time or energy to be that engaged. That makes me sad, but it's not how I live so at the end of the day I'll keep doing my thing and sharing the possibilities with anyone who cares. My friends were getting it though and I was happy to see them taking the time to pick out aromas, flavors, textures and finally sharing what they liked and didn't.

We started with the four 2011 bottles. Comments about the range of fruits present in the wines were first to surface. The racing acidity of the Wagner selection was the next thing to spur conversation. This wine needs food to be complete in my opinion. I don't feel like the acidity was out of balance, but it was pronounced and the wine tasted best with a fruit & nut cheese spread, on crackers, one of our friend brought.

The Fulkerson & Three Brothers wines got the most feedback. Both were surprisingly light in color, with the Fulkerson also being very light in body. Both were fruity and everyone thought the Three Brothers wine had something in the background that was adding nuance, but none of us could quite describe it.

The Glenora Riesling was the sweetest of the bunch and garnered plenty of comment on the breadth of the fruit that was perceived at that level of sweetness. This wine carries along enough acidity to keep things well balanced, although as the wine warmed it trended a bit flabby.

In comparison to the Trimbach the Finger Lakes Rieslings were clustered in a tight zone around it. While there were differences, nothing significant or detracting stood out. The Dr. Zenzen was oxidized from a bad screw cap so we dumped it. When we got to the Ravines 2009 Dry Riesling I prefaced the tasting with an explanation of why I liked this particular wine so much. I feel it is an example of a finesse player from the Finger Lakes region. Everything is focused, in the right place and the wine just exudes polish. The Three Brothers bottle was compared to the Ravines the most, although everyone did agree that the Ravines wine was indeed specific and distinct.

The Anthony Road wine was one I hadn't had yet but did have some qualified recommendations behind my anticipation. This is a another finesse wine. Everything about it is focused and clean. It isn't as sweet as I would have expected from the reported residual sugar (which I can't find in my notes), but that didn't take anything away from its enjoyment. There wasn't really any comparison to be had here, more of a broadening of one's understanding of the range of Rieslings produced in the Finger Lakes region. I finished the night sipping on this little gem!

At the end of the tasting the Fulkerson & Three Brothers wines were the winners amongst the 2011 bottles, with the decision between the two was split. Our friends cheerfully thanked us for the education and the opportunity to taste wines new to them. Those thanks weren't one sided. I feel like I learned a few things from putting on my "teacher" hat in preparation for the tasting. Observing the others digging into the different wines was also instructive, proving to me that I should continue to host these types of tastings.

Cheers!

Jason

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Sparkling Anniversary

In two previous posts, "Getting to Know Sparkling Wine" and "Leftover Sparkling Wine", about sparkling wine I shared what I have learned this year from a closer inspection of sparkling wine. In the first post, for the WineMaker Magazine blog actually, I teased readers with a list of bottles my wife and I had enjoyed around our wedding anniversary this year. All of those bottles are reasonably accessible to people who live near us and make use of the NH state system, and/or can direct ship to home. None of the wine are really bank breaking purchases for those who want to try them. It's not a snobby or specialty list, and I'm not advertising it as such. It covers a range of styles from both well known to smaller regional producers and gave me a lot of new information to consider about sparkling wine.

With "Getting to Know Sparkling Wine" I also shared my concerns that in my experience sparkling wine enjoyment was too often relegated to special occasions and not everyday drinking. There is no reason for this these days, sparkling wine pairs well with so many foods and there are values out there to suit all budgets. Steve Heimoff touched on this same thought last week in "Sparkling wines for the holidays: why not all year long?" After such a profession some of you might be thinking that ending that very article with my own plan to consume a variety of sparkling wines around my wedding anniversary was a conceit to my assertions. Maybe, and I can only say that we enjoyed these wines during what we called our "Sparkling Anniversary", where most were enjoyed with everyday dinners, or snacks; and even popcorn whilst watching TV. No special occasions there! We did indeed take some bubbly in the limo as we rode to our actual anniversary dinner, and I'll explain the significance and sentiment of those bottles a little bit later.

In "Leftover Sparkling Wine" I share my experiences with a grower Champagne tasting which constituted my first formal experience with Champagnes made by the grape grower. My thoughts and those of the host, Adam Japko of the WineZag, are interesting reading for anyone not familiar with the category.

As I alluded to above we didn't really do anything special with the wines for our Sparkling Anniversary and by the time we were through the best pairings we had experienced were with either buttered popcorn or French Fries. We also made cocktails with several of the bottles, both to experiment with different flavors and textures and put wines that didn't pop for us to good use.

Here's that Sparkling Anniversary list again (and in no particular order):

• Chateau Frank Célèbre Rose
• Chandon Blanc de Noirs
• Cuvée Aurora Rosé Alta Langa
• Mumm Napa Brut Prestige
• Gruet Blanc de Noirs
• Fox Run Blanc de Blancs
• Lafitte Brut
• Banfi Rosa Regale
• Raventós i Blanc Reserve Brut
• Mionetto Moscato Dolce
• Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin Brut
• Segura Viudas Brut Reserva Heredad
• Cuvée y Camps Brut Nature
• Montsarra Cava

Best of the Best

It would be hard not to share which of these wines we liked best and why, but since tastes vary and I don't rate wines, take it for what it's worth.

Cuvée y Camps Brut Nature - For both Margot and I this was the most refined of all the sparklers we tried. The nose is tropical with tart citrus in the mouth and through the finish. This is one of the best dinner party or entertaining-worthy sparkling wines I have ever had.

Chateau Frank Célèbre Rose - This is a medium-dry rose colored sparkler that is just simply easy to drink. It is well balanced, delicious and should appeal to both dry and sweet sparkling wine drinkers. It was summer when we drank these wines and this one really pulled off the role of refreshment.

Mumm Napa Brut Prestige - I really liked the balance of fruity and tart character in this wine. The slight creamy texture brought the whole package together. This is another fantastic wine to use for entertaining and a slam dunk with appetizers, including fried ones!

Honorable Mentions

Gruet Blanc de Noirs - This wine was notable for me because of the pronounced strawberry and citrus that actually came off like berry lemonade. This is a fairly full bodied sparkling wine and was a departure from some of the others in the lineup.

Montsarra Cava - Cava performed well in the tastings, but wasn't entirely new to us as a style, and this wine was the first one we tried. Fruity with hints of almonds a slight creaminess, this wine piqued our interests for more.

Cocktail Experiments

Passion Fruit Cocktail - we used the Fox Run Blanc de Blancs for this drink, combining it with passion fruit puree, Cointreau and bitters. The dry sparkling wine lightens up the puree nicely and the blend of fruits in the puree and wine showed nicely in the nose. It's a sweet cocktail, but if that is your thing this one might give you a smile!

French 75 - I fall on the Cognac side of the French 75 debate and thus I make mine with it. These are a potent cocktail with a nice balance of tart and sweet. The texture is best with a good sparkling wine with lots of small bubbles.

Champagne Cocktail - This simple concoction using a bitters infused sugar cube and sparkling wine is both tasty and fun to drink. Watching the bubbles ribbon off the sugar cube and head to the top of the glass provides the entertainment. We tried these with both domestic sparkling wine and Cava.

Sentimental Bottles

I'll finish with a few of the bottles that have special meaning for us. Two of them are part of our "wine personality" and elicit great memories any time we drink them.

( We dined at Top of the Hub in Boston for our anniversary dinner. The subset was beautiful! )

First, and maybe the most comical to wine aficionados, is Banfi Rosa Regale. We just like this wine. It's sweet, sparkling and super fruity. I bought it for Margot as a gift a few years ago and she absolutely loved it. Margot calls it a panty remover, which from experience isn't a bad way to describe its merits beyond a beverage. We buy a few bottles of this several times a year. When paired with dark chocolate this wine makes an excellent dessert.

Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin Brut - we received this wine as a gift from friends and chose to enjoy it on the night of our anniversary dinner to honor the joy we take in having such great friends. The wine is also very good.

Segura Viudas Brut Reserva Heredad - This is our anniversary wine. I was looking for a delicious bottle of bubbly to celebrate our tenth anniversary in 2007 and came across this one. The bottle is actually a collectible, hand blown and emblazoned with a pewter crest and base. I snapped one up and we enjoyed it the weekend of our anniversary party that year. This is a complex sparkling wine, projecting citrus, peaches, minerality and a touch of graphite or smoke. It has a full bodied feel, but is rather a light, refreshing wine. We opened this bottle in the limo on the way to Boston for dinner this year, and it didn't disappoint once again. I purchased several bottles this time and can't wait to try one with a bit of age at our next milestone anniversary!

Drink More Sparkling Wine!

I hope these three articles on sparkling wine have inspired somebody to crack open a bottle of bubbly and enjoy it with friends (or family or a significant other, all of which are friends to me) just because you can. The diversity in styles, textures and flavors offers a world of possibilities for us to explore.

Cheers!

Jason

Leftover Sparkling Wine

Check out our free shipping deals and buy fine wine.

After writing a recent WineMaker Magazine blog post entitled “Getting to Know Sparkling Wine” I had quite a bit of additional material to share. I’ve tasted more sparkling wine this year than any prior year in my wine-drinking life, and the range of styles and background I’ve come in contact with has been both educational and fun. So here's my leftovers, I hope you enjoy them!

More on Sparkling Wine Styles

Cremant was a term I came in contact with looking through different resources on sparkling wine. The word is used to identify non-Champagne sparkling wine produced using the traditional method in France and other EU countries. Ultimately I would be best to understand that the difference in these wines will be more like any other regional distinction, including the grapes used, soil composition and climate.

Albert Bichot Cremant de Bourgogne Rose

I picked this bottle up from the local state store because I was curious what if anything I might detect about a Cremant differently from other sparkling wines. I didn't discern anything specific, but since I am not that familiar with regional differences in traditional sparkling wine, what do I know?

This wine is made from 80% Pinot Noir with the remaining 20% made of up Gamay and Chardonnay. It pours a deep pink color and has red, and even dark red fruits, like raspberry and currant on the nose. In the mouth the wine is tart, dry with plenty of small bubbles that create a pleasant texture. From a performance perspective this wine does pretty well. The regular retail is $19.99 but it seems to be on sale for $16.99 pretty frequently. At either price I see pretty good value and in my final post (next week) on sparkling wine I will share tastings on a couple more rose sparklers for comparison.

Cava in particular performed well when compared to many of the other sparklers I tasted this year. Spanish wines overall offer plenty of value, lots of $15-20 high quality offerings,  where I saw difficulty in even finding Champagne or worthy domestic bottlings in the same price range.  

Cava showed up three times in a lineup of sparkling wines that I selected for a month long celebration of our 15th wedding anniversary, the subject of my third and next post on sparkling wine.  We finished that celebration with a sentimental one which I will share the story and thoughts on next week. What did I think of the other two?

Raventos i Blanc Reserva Brut Cava 2008

I nabbed this guy from Wine.com for 19.99. I found it dry and slightly minerally with restrained fruit in both the nose and mouth. It is very crisp and clean making it a great social wine or one that would pair with a wide range of foods. This wine has beautiful texture, the prickly carbonation is buffered with just a little creaminess. I was surprised at how simple, yet beautiful this wine was for the price.

Juve Y Camps Brut Nature Reserva de la Familia Cava 2007

Another Wine.com find at 18.99, and one I have had before. This one pours a deep gold color, darker than most sparkling wines I have experienced. The nose projected tropical fruits which were married with tart citrus in the mouth. 

Margot and I both found this Cava to be particularly refined and Margot liked it more than many of the others we ended up trying. There is some complexity here, something that might not make it as universal, non-aficionados might not appreciate it for what it is, which is only a lost opportunity and not the end of the world. I do like to pair wine with people so such scenarios concern me.

Grower Produced Champagne

Earlier this year I attended a tasting hosted by friend and fellow wine-blogger Adam Japko who writes the WineZag. Adam had assembled two flights of Champagnes that had been produced by the grape grower rather than a negociant, famous house or vanity label. Not knowing much about this category of wine it was hard to decide what to expect. In doing some research I came across plenty of vigorous debate about stylistic differences,  variation, performance and value, but nothing that could make sense of it in any concrete way. Read Adam's post "Grower Champagne Makes Sense" for more information on this class of wines, the flight list and his thoughts on some of those we tasted.

What I experienced was most instructive. First, there was plenty of variation amongst the different bottles, something atypical to big name Champagne, but what struck me was how exciting some of the nuances were.  Pear, quince, mushrooms, graphite, yeast, smoke, lemon, peach and guava were some of the specific aromas and flavors that I wrote on my tasting sheet. Some of the wines tasted wild, inferring that the producer wasn't trying to produce a house style, rather was letting the grapes and yeast do what they were inclined to do that year.  I like exciting wines and sometimes just being a little different is all the excitement I need!

On the value front my conclusions were mixed. Many of the bottle prices were in the range that while you get what you get with a big name house at the same price, I wouldn’t say either wins a hands down fan vote of everyday consumers. The favorites trended in the $45-50 range, and taking the nuances as a good thing they all performed well at those prices. Those with developed Champagne palates will definitely find lots to love in those wines, and potentially even more in a few beyond $50 amongst those we tasted.

I can't tell you what my favorite was because I can't find that page of my notes! What I can tell you is that is if, and more so when, I want to spend $40-$50 on a bottle of sparkling wine I would definitely look at grower produced Champagne before deciding what from my available options I will take home. Depending on the people and the setting a wine with more unique character might actually be a better fit!

The Show Goes On

I hope you enjoyed my sparkling wine leftovers. Next week I be posting on the sparkling wines that I enjoyed in June to celebrate my wedding anniversary. I know that I said in my WineMaker Magazine article (linked above) that sparkling wine wasn't just a celebratory drink and I can assure you that while I chose my anniversary as the backdrop to try a bunch of different sparkling wines, the specific tasting scenarios were very pedestrian. The list included those reviewed here, several domestic versions, and sparkling wines made in France, Spain and Italy.

Cheers!

Jason

Follow Your Nose, Field Work for Wine Lovers

Follow your nose. Learn using your nose. Let your nose participate in sensory fusion with the rest of your senses. Aside from the obvious neurology, physiology and chemistry underlying the themes of the work described in Neurogastronomy: How The Brain Creates Flavor and Why It Matters, author Gordon Shephard makes the conclusions tangible in everyday terms. Synthesia, a type of literal sensory fusion, is defined in Chapter 13 using the analogy of someone declaring that a sweet taste, tastes blue. Got it.

I’ve written several times (1, 2, 3, 4) about techniques people could use to create sensory pictures of wine aromas and flavors for themselves. Simply put, experience is key. Any technique that focuses primarily on direct sensory exposure will, when applied in equal measure, consistently trump all other methods. Why do I think that?

One of the things I found most interesting about the olfactory system is what was covered on page 103 in Chapter 11 of Neurogastronomy. The idea that the olfactory cortex (the part of the brain the initially processes smell) is memory based, yes you read that correctly, is summarized in six points, which I will further summarize as:

1. The processing of the same smell continuously is not given the same amount of effort continuously. Most effort is given to changes in smells.
2. The system learns and adapts to better handle repeated exposure to different smells.
3. The learning creates maps of smells and allows for finer distinctions between smells that are similar.
4. The adaptations also promote the improvement in the identification of individual smells amongst a palate of smells.
5.  Much like the way we know vision to be the fusion of different wavelengths of light and intensities, odor objects are created from a composite of different smells.
6. Odor objects can combine with other sensory input, like the basic taste and tactile sensations in the mouth, to produce the sensation of flavors.

My initial thoughts were the following:

I see the emphasis of effort on changes in smell as transition, and the system consistently trying to reconcile changes with the known and the different combinations that triggers in one’s memory. Accepting that there are some key physiological and neurological differences in how the olfactory system information is processed versus other sensory information, the adaptations make me think humans underrate their sense of smell and can evolve the sense considerably. With practice these natural adaptations in our own bodies can lead to remarkable experiences. The third point is striking in the acuteness with which memory can be tuned using the nose. When you add that not only can you expect to pick out olfactory compositions better, but the individual parts or solos better as well, it is hard not to consider what more experience can do. Brought together, and it does come together but I’ll save some for another post, the overall sensory experience of smell, taste and flavor has immense emotional implications.

The conclusion is that if you want to have a more refined palate and improve your senses for wine the best way is to get out and taste lots of everything!

One of the basic foundations in the book is the concept of retronasal smell, and simply stated it means you actually have to eat and drink stuff for the complete experience. The interaction of the food or beverage at the back of the mouth and aromas back up into the nasal cavity is the function involved here. Specifically for wine industry professionals this is a challenge. You can fashion a tasting method that incorporates retronasal smell by making sure you exhale over wine in the mouth without swallowing it, but to me it is more straightforward to take small sips and swallow at least one to fill in the sensory blanks that spitting creates. All day tasting might not be possible that way, but the solution is out there.

I followed my nose tonight. I saw a review last week for white Bordeaux. I can’t even tell you what the label was, and I don’t remember what magazine the review was in. But, it came back to me tonight and I grabbed a bottle that I had recently purchased off the rack to try. I’ve had white Bordeaux all of ten times in my life so I couldn’t really say off the top of my head what it should smell and taste like. But I knew if I opened a bottle and gave my initial impressions some attention I could improve the chances that I would be able to identify it in the future. I also know that young, simple white Bordeaux isn’t the same as exceptional and aged versions. Therefore, I am improving the chances that I will be able to identify young, straightforward white Bordeaux in the future.

The prior sentence was an attempt at humor. Sorry, I’ll get back to the program. And because I was following my nose I used my phone camera for the pictures. They suck, but that isn’t why you are here, seriously, I know this.

I opened a bottle of Marquis de Chasse 2010 Bordeaux. My first smell impressions of the wine were lime, grapefruit, citrus and herbs. In the mouth the wine has considerable acidity, a wet smooth stone minerality with lots of citrus, field greens and unripe pear. The vegetal qualities of this wine are there, but spread out very well. You’ve got the herbs in the nose, some bitter greens in the mouth and a touch of wet grass in the finish. It isn’t the most distinct combination in this young form, but I bet with aging the distinction would become more clear based on the percentage of Semillon, a grape not common to most wine regions.

I hit the web to remind myself about the history of white Bordeaux. It was clear that the number of times I had had it was a treat considering it is usually outnumbered 20 or more to 1 to white Burgundy across a large and varied group of restaurant wine lists. Typically a healthy blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, this wine should be dry, tart, projecting  fruit when young and a more nutty or dried fruit character later in life. Oak aging is common, but variations do exist. Graves is the one sub-region producing notable white Bordeaux wines.

What does this wine remind me of? Remember that smell processing is memory driven when this question is asked. Well, the lime narrows it for me to foods with a tropical spin and warm weather. The greens inspire more of a spring-time vibe for me and drew comparisons to Torrentes, South African white blends and of other wines from the Bordeaux region.

I’ll need more practice with the whites from Bordeaux, but at least I know that my practice will pay-off both short and long term. It is most sweet to know that you can enjoy a pursuit that will enable you to enjoy it more each day.

Cheers!

Jason

#WBC11 Red Wine Speed Tasting

Here’s some more speed tasting notes. Drink it!

Tarrara Casa Nova 2008

Cherry and raspberry aromas. Moderate tannins. Lengthy finish. This (and wines made in the similar BDX or Meritage style are making me think that blending could be the secret to great wines from up and coming US wine regions.

From the Commonwealth Collection which is a selection of the best barrels. Bordeaux style blend. Merlot, Cab Franc, Cab Sauv. Jordan started in restaurant business. Originally from Niagara region.

Barboursville Vineyard Octagon 2006

Huge aromas of cherry and red berries with some dark fruits and grape leaves. Very soft tannins. You feel the teeth chatter, but it slips away fast.

 Merlot, Cab Sauv and Cab Franc driven with some PV. First made in 1993.

Chateau Mukhrani Saperavi 2007

Deep purple color with intense nose with a black pepper and smoke. Dusty finish evocative of the warm climate wines found in Italy and Spain.

From the country of Georgia. New varietal and from a new country for me!

Boxwood Blend 2009

All Cab in the nose. Green flavors in the mouth with fine and smooth tannins. Long, slightly dry soil influence on the finish.

60% Cab Sauv, 36% Merlot, 4% PV. 100% of Estate fruit. 17 total acres, all red. Boxwood is the name of the farm which has a historical designation.

Abourious 2009

Wicked dark. Killer unique aroma. Jammy and wicked fruit forward like Zin. This shit sells itself. Has aromas and flavors with hints of hybrid grapes.

From the Russian River valley. The grape comes from France, south of Bordeaux. Not much is known about.

Sivas-Sonoma Old Vine Zin 2009

Very fruit forward with lots of red berries. Tannins are there but mostly at the very end.

This is the inaugural vintage and not yet in distribution in many locales.

Decibel Hawkes Bay Malbec 2009

A bit of funk in the nose. Very soft. This wine could take a NZ Pinot for a run with some lamb!

50 case production. Malbec is found mostly in Hawkes Bay within NZ.

Rodney Strong Alexander’s Crown Cab 2009

Deep color with a slight blue shift. Big in the nose. Tannins come in but stop short of getting wicked.

Robert Larsen is a funny guy.

Chateau Edmus 2007

Wicked funky nose. Need some brie and stinky fresh goat cheese. Tannins dry out at the end. Definitely a good example of Bordeaux.

Veritas Petit Verdot 2009

Deep purple color. Nice moderate aromas. Hints of deceptive residual sugar. Finish is not super long, but clean.

Lorinon Reserve 2006

Abundant fruit in the nose. Lots of cherry, with subtle wood notes in the mouth.

1 of 600 wines from Rioja. Pia is a cool name!

Artesa Pinot Noir 2009

Flowers and red berries in the nose. Raspberry, graphite and vanilla in the mouth. Nice subtle Pinot for Cali.

Cheers!

Jason

Viva Virginia Viognier!

The much anticipated pre-#WBC11 Virginia Viognier tasting has come and gone. Of number of lucky conference attendees were shipped six Viogniers from different Virginia producers for tasting during the virtual event. I was lucky enough to be selected and I am thankful to the organizers and participating wineries (listed with contact information at the bottom) for taking the time and offering up the product to help me get to know a part of the Virginia wine landscape.

I convened a small group (me + 2) at my house for the tasting, preparing some snacks with flavors and textures drawn from the notes provided for the event. We had cheese, fruit, a cold shrimp dip, crackers, bread and spicy chicken skewers to sample with the wines as we progressed through the tasting. We were by no means alone with many others tasting and Tweeting during the event.

I’ll share my notes on the wines next (in the order we tasted them), then offer the recipes I used for the snacks so the curious can try them for themselves. I haven’t seen any wrap-up posts from others yet, but I will update a list at the end of this post as they get published.

Horton Vineyards NV Sparkling Viognier

When this selection arrived I was intrigued as I have never had (not that I know of) Viognier in sparkling form.  After tasting it the question the group of us came up with was “how would we know it was made from Viognier if it wasn’t disclosed?” This isn’t a rookie question, we do have a bit of blind tasting experience, but more of one from the perspective that the wine didn’t evoke a Viognier sensibility to us in any obvious way. Does the fact that it was sparkling make that harder?

What we did find was more fruit in the nose that I am used to with sparkling wine, but I am sure this wine is of better quality than many I have had, so that doesn’t give it away for me. I also picked up a deceptive sweet sensation in the center, which I did enjoy. All of us found that the Dubliner cheese made the wine pop with more fruit and a crisper finish.

Overall I very much enjoyed this wine, but don’t really have enough experience with sparkling wines to put it any style context. There were no flaws I could detect, and I could see glasses of it disappearing very easily which votes it high for a wine to entertain with!

Blenheim Vineyards 2010 Viognier

I immediately noted that the nose reminded me of a subtle Muscat, with a perfume essence. In the mouth I picked up a woolly (another in my group said lanolin) essence much like a French Chenin. The acidity in the finish reminded me of a Sauvignon Blanc, and a picked up a touch of salinity. All together I was confused about what I was drinking and wasn’t sure I was tasting something with the desired composition. I let it breath a bit and came back to it and didn’t find a change. A second tasting today didn’t change my impression. I am going to take a guess that it didn’t travel well and may have needed some time to rest after its trip. I look forward to trying other wines from Blenheim next week when I am in VA.

King Family Vineyards 2010 Viognier

This wine has tons of fruit in the nose, including melon and peach. This wine presented the full body and balance I am used to in Viognier, and that I have only been able to produce once in my own wines, which made me smile. All of us picked up a little baking spice aroma, from the malo perhaps, and experienced a nice clean and crisp finish.

The cold shrimp dip was very assertive with this wine, but the flavor transformation was exciting to savor. The best pairing was the spicy chicken skewer which helped to focus the wine and bring out the acidity.

Barboursville 2009 Viognier Reserve

The shocking thing about this wine was the note that it had had 11 months of lees contact. That seemed like a lot to me, especially for a Viognier. The best description of this wine the group of us had was “old world rustic”. The intense acidity, yeasty undertones and light aromas were not expected, but not displeasing. Quite a few other Tweeters questioned if this wine was off, and it got me thinking that the trip might have taken this guy for a loop too. It didn’t seem to be put together. As it was I could see using this wine to pair with a number of white wine friendly dishes where the pairing act in itself wasn’t going to get a lot of focus. It pains me to write these things after only one tasting, but I am truly optimistic that I will get another taste soon and then might find more of what was sought after in this wine.

Cooper Vineyards 2010 Viognier

The initial impression of this wine gave me a sinking feeling. For I love Viognier, it is my favorite white wine. I have made it every year since 2007, and I have searched for my initial success ever since, and I love finding new ones to try. Oaked Viognier though makes me cringe. It just seems so unnecessary to do that to such a wonderfully aromatic grape. BUT, this wine is excellent! Only 40% of it was fermented in used barrels and the balance of it comes off better than I have ever experienced this treatment before. The baking spices in the nose are pleasing (makes me think of baking in the fall) and the peach and dried fruit flavors in the mouth were there and clear.

I paired this wine with the goat, Brie and Dubliner cheese, enjoying all of the pairings. With some strawberry and peach I got more fruit from and experienced the crispness of the wine.

Delaplane 2010 Viognier – Maggie’s Vineyard

We ended the tasting with this wine, and for me it ended up being my favorite. And that wasn’t because I was at home and had a buzz! This wine has the aroma, body, and flavors that I love in a Viognier! My summary description was “warm pecan pie”. It had just that right balance of nut, sweet and fruit (pear & ripe peach) that had me pouring another taste pretty quickly!

The notes indicate it is off-dry, which I think is an overstatement. It does have some sweetness, but not enough for me to classify it that way.

I tasted this with most of the snacks on hand, and it found that it went well with the spicy chicken skewer as the notes alluded that it might.

Now on to the snack recipes!

Cold Shrimp Dip

4 tsp minced fresh onion

1 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice

6 oz cream cheese, softened

2 Tbsp butter, softened

1 tbsp. mayonnaise

Dash of hot sauce

1 dozen chopped cooked medium-sized shrimp

2 tbsp. chopped dill pickle

1 ½ Tbsp dried thyme

Soak the minced onion in lemon juice; then mix with cream cheese, butter, mayonnaise and hot sauce. Mix in the shrimp, pickle and thyme into cheese mixture. Refrigerate for at least several hours. Serve on crackers or crusty bread.

Spicy Chicken Skewers

3 tbsp lime juice

3 tbsp canola oil

2 tbsp Tamari

1 tbsp fish sauce

1 tsp red pepper (from tube)

1 pound chicken tenders

Mix all ingredients, except chicken, well. Place chicken in marinade, mixing to coat. Cover and marinate overnight. Soak wood skewers in water for 20 minutes prior to skewering the chicken tenders. Grill the tenders 3-4 minutes on each side. Serve immediately.

The participating wineries can be found online and on Twitter with the contact information below.

Horton Vineyards - http://hortonwine.com/ - @HortonWine

Blenheim Vineyards - http://www.blenheimvineyards.com/ - @BlenheimWines

King Family Vineyards - http://www.kingfamilyvineyards.com/ - @kingvineyards

Barboursville Vineyards & Winery - http://www.barboursvillewine.net/winery/ - @barboursville

Cooper Vineyards - http://www.coopervineyards.com/index.html - @coopervineyards

Delaplane Cellars - http://www.delaplanecellars.com/ - @DelaplaneCellrs

A huge thank you goes to the wineries, the folks at http://www.virginiawine.org/, and Frank from the DrinkWhatYouLike blog (@DrinkWhatULike) for involving me in the event.

This time next week I will be tasting and tweeting with 399 others in the heart of Virginia wine country!

Cheers!

Jason


Posts From Other Tasting Participants

BlogYourWine.com - http://blogyourwine.com/2011/07/16/virginia-viognier-a-tasting-part-one-of-two/
SuburbanWino.com - http://www.suburbanwino.com/2011/07/best-wine-post-ever-written.html

Tasting in Los Olivos

In my last post I shared our guerilla mission to enjoy food & drink in downtown Santa Barbara in the one day we(Margot and I ) had set aside for it. We had a second day and planned another round of wine tastings in a similar fashion. It is sort of what we do.

We rented a car (from Hertz in the lobby of the hotel, super convenient!) first thing in the morning and after breakfast headed up to Los Olivos, about 45 minutes to the north. Los Olivos is home to a wide array of tasting rooms for area wineries, making it a great place for us to drive to, park and explore. We certainly could have planned some winery visits, but with the extra travel we would inevitably have needed to spend more time or cut our plans short.

Out first stop was Alexander & Wayne the product of two wine loving gentlemen, hence the name. The sign outside the tasting room suggested Bordeaux and Burgundy styles, which if you think about it long enough doesn’t make a lot of sense since you are in California. I guess advertising to a common denominator and trying to evoke a sensibility from another place is a smart play, I just don’t get it. We saw a lot of that and suspect that the average taste isn’t very educated and needs to be led in this way.

Setting the rant above aside I did enjoy the wines. The blends were my favorite, offering considerable complexity with combinations of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot. I liked the Cuvee HM the best although the Cuvee Five was very good, just a little more muscular and rougher. In both cases the tannins were pretty big, but softening; something I would imagine some time would help with. Their varietal Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc didn’t disappoint either. The Cab Franc in particular did exude some stinky cheese rind, which I was very happy to experience. The final wine I tasted here was the RSF, a port style blend of Zinfandel and Petite Syrah. It presented itself with a ruby/tawny color and aromas of dried fruits and raisins. Spices showed up in the middle and through the finish. We took a bottle of this home so we could have some sweet memories on another day.

Our second stop, and the reason why we really chose Los Olivos, was Andrew Murray Vineyards. Sometime in 2010 I noticed a Twitter follow notification for Andrew Murray (@gotrhones) and was curious enough to look up who the person was. If a the proprietor of a small winery in hills north of Santa Barbara thought I was interesting enough to follow I knew we should visit and try the wines. As luck would have it Andrew was out of town during our visit, but was sure to alert the tasting room staff that we would coming around so they could share the story and the wines with us. Stephanie cheerfully greeted us when we arrived, and for the next hour we had her and the tasting room all to ourselves. To be fair Los Olivos wasn’t busy so our exclusive attention was probably a bit of luck as well. I’ll say it right up front, I am so glad we chose to stop by. The Syrahs, all single vineyard designates, were fantastic and worth a leisurely taste.

The story of the wines and the person behind them is actually quite simple. Andrew lived in France with his family for a time when he was a teenager. His family was in the restaurant business and exposed him to wine in the Southern Rhone. He fell in love with the placed and the wines, something I surely know is easy to do. At some point they decided to bring what they loved to California and started a winery using his name.

My favorite was the 2007 McGinley Syrah. I found it to be really well balanced with bold but respectable tannins. The Tous Les Jours Syrah was much spicier with a considerable fruit forward character. The Watch Hill Syrah had some underlying funkiness to it that I couldn’t pin down. It added some allure and made raspberry fruit taste more savory than I would have ever expected. The last Syrah was from the Thompson vineyard and was a pleasurable combination of cherries, berries, spice and wood. We tasted several other styles including some from the “Days Off” label that offer wines designed for casual drinking and no fuss. The most recent Viognier was not yet available so my anticipation for it still stands. I will keep my eye on their online store in hopes I catch it before it sells out! Before we left we put together a mixed case to have shipped home. Sharing the Syrahs with friends is going to be a real treat.

This post would not be complete without a mention of the serendipitous lunch option we took advantage of. It turns out that we had arrived on “Tri-Tip” day, which is a local fascination. The R Country Market sells wood smoked tri-tip sandwiches a few days per week and when it is gone, it is gone and you have to wait until the next week. Margot and I love smoke meat and BBQ so this really was a lucky break for us. The sandwich was one of the best I have ever had and I will say nothing more. Look it up online, and believe me I have given you enough information to find it. New York Times, anyone? You’ll be jealous, and this picture isn’t going to help!

The last tasting room we visited was Byron Estate. I picked this one while had lunch after remembering how much I enjoyed a Chardonnay of theirs that we had had at the Blue Ginger (Ming Tsai’s restaurant) in Wellesley, MA about 10 years ago.

I tasted four Chardonnays and three Pinots. The Chards spanned 2005 to 2009 while the Pinots were all from 2009. The 2008 Santa Maria Chardonnay felt the most familiar and had me connecting the richness I enjoyed with my lobster dish at the Blue Ginger. The 2007 stainless Chard presented an interesting spiciness which grew through the finish. The 2005 selection was one of their library wines (no longer available) from the Nielson vineyard. It was impressive to see how well this wine has held up in the nearly 6 years since it was made. Keeping with the spicy theme I was caught off guard by the spicy (pepper) character of the 2009 Santa Barbara Pinot Noir. With cherry and smoke added in this wine was one of the more interesting ones I tried on this trip. The 2009 Nielson Pinot was the most complex of the three I tried. The baking spices and considerable structure of the wine was a great pleasure to taste.

By this point the afternoon was fully upon us and we headed back to Santa Barbara. It is always going to be true that you will need more time to really get to know a place, but the time we did had helped make it much less of a stranger to us.

Cheers!

Jason

Sam Adams Noble Pils

I saw the Sam Adams Noble Pils show up in the grocery store last month and although curious about it, I wasn’t prepared to sink the cash for a 6 or 12 pack of it. Sam Adams beers have not been bringing me as much joy as they used to. Several of the seasonal /limited release beers, the Cranberry Lambic & Chocolate Bock for two examples, have lost some of their punch as their volume and availability has increased. When I came across a bomber of the Noble Pils for $2 it made me more willing to give it a whirl.

That fact that it is brewed with all 5 of the noble hop varities, Hallertau Mittelfrueh, Tettnang Tettnanger, Spalt Spalter, Saaz, and Hersbrucker, is what caught my attention. I have no idea if I have had all of these types in other beers, but I doubt I have had them all one sip before.

The Noble Pils is a relatively new seasonal Beer for Sam Adams, having won the 2009 Beer Lovers Choice award. It is released in the late winter when New Englanders (thinking Boston is where Sam Adams is based) are more than ready for spring to set in and are turning to drinking lighter and refreshing beers.

Tasting notes

Yellow/gold in color.
Thick white head and light lacing on the glass.
Complex hop aromas of herbs and citrus.
Very light flavors of grains and ripening corn.
The hop flavors are well balanced and they don’t overpower the beer.
The acidity protracts the flavors on the finish; very refreshing.
I am not a big pilsner fan, but this is pretty tasty.

Though not creating a revival of Sam Adams for me, I would recommend this for springtime drinking. It is light, hoppy and refreshing, and when you aren’t looking for an incredibly complex beer this will satisfy your needs
Cheers!

Jason

Local Sips – Week of January 16, 2011

I only got out to one local beverage event this week, the Winter Beer Tasting at The Drinkery. In the week or so leading up to the event Joan sent out a note to her newsletter recipients with the list of winter beers she had on hand. She was asking us to vote on what would make the lineup on tasting night.

I had sampled several of the beers in the lineup at the NH Brewers Festival in 2010, and had included several others in the beer tasting at our holiday party. My votes were split between some I had had and some new selections.

• Sam Smith Winter Welcome
• Sierra Nevada Celebration
• Woodstock Wassail
• Shipyard Prelude
• Rogue Mogul Madness

And the final lineup was:

• Sierra Nevada Celebration
• Rogue Yellow Snow
• Rogue Santa’s Reserve Ale
• Sam Smith Winter Welcome
• Woodstock Wassail
• Otter Creek Black IPA
• Rogue Mogul Madness (thrown in as a bonus)

( winter beers lined up and ready to sample! )

My tasting notes on the first four can be found in the holiday post linked above. The Woodstock Wassail was one I tasted at the NH Brewers Festival. The comment I made to my friend Richard then and that was backed up again this week, is that is smells like maple syrup covered French Toast. Several of the other tasters found that to be apt description.

The Otter Creek Black IPA was definitely interesting. Nice and hoppy like you would expect from an IPA with dark malt flavors reminiscent of a stout or a dark brown ale. This is definitely a winter warmer with some character.

( as you can see, the place was hopping! )

The beer I was most interested in trying was the Rogue Mogul Madness. I knew I was going to buy one even if I didn’t get to taste it, but Joan cracked one as soon as I asked about it. Thank you so much Joan!

The hoppy nose is nicely enveloped in malty aromas making for a pleasing warm smell. The malt flavors are reasonable and there is only a mild hit of acidity. This is a sweet spot of a hoppy/malty beer for apre-ski warming. I am hoping to visit Rogue later in the year. I might not want to leave!

( Rogue makes an interesting lineup of beers. )

Margot went with me to this event and of course got excited at the selection of beers to take home. She hadn’t had the Brooklyn Chocolate Stout yet so that was added to our mixed six pack. Also in the pack was one each of the Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA, Midas Touch, Indian Brown Ale, Palo Santo Marron and Burton Baton. Reviews on these will show up down the line. We also grabbed a Rogue Mogul Madness and a Shipyard Prelude. I can’t wait to crack one of these after a snowshoe trek!

Some excitement for me came in the form of the case of Ballantine XXX Ale that I ordered being ready to take home. Ever since I read an article about this beer in the May/June 2010 Issue of Brew Your Own magazine I knew I both wanted to try this beer and to make a clone of it. Ballantine XXX is a unique beer and representing a slice of American brewing history. At the time it was first brewed (1850’s) it was more flavorful and had a bit more body that the lager beers typical for the time. It was dry-hopped imparting hop nose and flavor not found in the beers it competed with. It is the original American Pale Ale with a tasty hoppy character! I cracked one of them open when I got home and found exactly what I was looking for. A simple pale ale with a nice balance of grain and hop aromas/flavors. My version of this is going to be the perfect beer for summer parties. I expect to brew a batch of it in March or April.

Cheers!

--Jason

*** Don’t forget that the Easter Seals Winter Wine Spectacular is coming up on January 27th. Tickets are sold out (or nearly so) but there are many other events going on during Wine Week. Check the event web site for more information.