Merry Christmas!

Ho Ho Ho

Wine Judging

First, I have never been a wine judge. I have taken a wine judging class at the local college, talked to judges, attended or worked at wine events that are judged. So I'm not an insider, but then I don't have anything to defend either.

Looking at a wine's medals is one way to decide to buy, but what does a medal actually mean?

First, a winery has to enter their wine in a judging. Sometimes the wine is actually picked by the event rather than the winery volunteering the wines. But most likely it's the winery deciding what wines to enter in what events. So a wine may get entered into lots of events, a few, or none. A wine that's available only at the winery and not sold retail or a wine that easily sells out every year is unlikely to be entered as the purpose of the judgings is to win medals and sell wine!

If you have the time and desire there are some things to investigate about individual medals giving at a competition.

1. How may wines were entered and how many received medals. If 80% of the wines got something then what's the point? Actually, the point is marketing. A winery is more likely to enter if they are likely to get a medal.

2. How many gold vs. silver vs. bronze medals were given out? If there were 20 wines in a particular category, 18 got medals, and 12 of those were gold then what's the point? However, if there were 200 wines in a category and two got gold then that should mean something.

How do judges do it? They taste a lot of wine over a couple days or a week. Palate fatigue is an issue. Sometime a wine may just stand out (not necessarily completely in a good way). Even the order the wines are tasted makes a difference. The first and the last wines get noticed. If there's a particularly "strong" or nasty wine whatever unfortunate wine to follow it is in trouble.

One interesting thing coming out of the wine judging class I took was you got "attaboys" for agreeing with the majority of the other folks and your judgement was suspect if you picked wines others didn't.

So should you care about medal-winning wines? Sure, it's a place to start. I would look for wineries winning in different competitions over multiple years. Of course, that's if you want to do the research on this. Why do this? Because a wine can easily get a gold in one competition and fail to get a medal in the next.

Like you I sometimes pick a wine on a retailer's shelf because there's a little card under it saying "Orange County Gold Medal Winner!"

Bubbles

We don't understand sparkling wine well. Because if we did we'd all be drinking a lot more bubbly.

Is sparkling wine just for:

-- New Years

-- Weddings

-- Major celebrations like job promotions, anniversaries?

NO

What is a sparkling wine?

Sparkling wine and Champagne are the same. Champagne is sparkling wine from that district in France. Sparkling wine is more acidic than still wine and so has a bit of sugar added back in at the end of it's creation for a touch of sweetness to balance out the acids. The acid is what makes sparklers go so well with most foods.

Sparkling wine is different

OK, part of the problem is that sparkling wine is a bit confusing. Blame it on the French. :) After all, what's a cuvee or a dosage? (Pronounced doh-SAHJ just to add to the confusion). And when you're shopping an Extra Dry is actually kind of sweet; a Brut is much drier.

Also, opening a bottle of bubbly is a bit different. I've seen someone purposely try to shoot the cork out of a magnum of sparkling wine for distance -- it went a long way! Also, a few years ago, a winery to remain nameless, was sued by a guy who damaged an eye opening a bottle. Apparently it wasn't the first bottle of the night. It can be a dangerous weapon--point it down range!

What food to serve with a sparkling wine

Question: What kind of wine goes with the salad course?

Answer: Either a sparkler or just have water.

The slightly sweet sparkling wines go well with desserts, plus fruits and nuts. With any rich food the acids in a sparkler will help cut through that richness.

Traditional pairings are sparkling wines with strawberries, with strong cheeses (such as Brie), and with chocolates, but there's so much more. Seafood, pastas, many spicy dishes, and salty foods are often better with a bubbly than with the usual still wines paired with them.

Chinese food and Gewürztraminer or beer? Try a bottle of bubbly!

Crab cakes and sparkling wine? A favorite! A very romantic pairing. To be ended with chocolate and sparkling wine, of course,

A nice bottle of bubbly makes any meal special.

California sparkling wine suggestions

Prices, for California wines anyway, are low for good quality sparklers. In Sonoma, Gloria Ferrer is one of the best for quality and price. Iron Horse and "J" Wineries are also outstanding. The best California sparklers come from Schramsberg in Napa Valley. They put on a great tour and tasting if you're ever in the neighborhood.

For a good $20 Brut try one of these from Sonoma, Napa or Mendocino County: Gloria Ferrer, as mentioned, plus Domaine Carneros, Domaine Chandon, Mumm, Piper Sonoma, and Roederer.

BTW, I just picked up a Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Noirs for $17 at the local market.

Celebrate Every Day!

Holiday food/wine pairings

An often asked question: What goes with my holiday dinner?

The basics of food & wine pairing are:

-- Don't let the wine flavors overwhelm the food, and vice versa. A young Cabernet with turkey? Probably not. But with just the cranberry sauce, probably yes. Of course, the focus of the meal is the turkey and stuffing.

-- It's not just the meat, it's the entire dinner, including any sauces. Halibut in butter with Zinfandel? Yuck. But fish with a flavorful salsa on top with Zin, probably.

The followings suggestions would be for dry wines and nothing "special" added to the meats.

Ham -- Sparkling wine is my first choice (goes well with salty foods). Pinot Noir, Gewurztraminer, Riesling, or Rosé can work, too.

Turkey -- Chardonnay, Rosé, or Pinot Noir.

Crab -- Chardonnay or Riesling.

Goose, Duck, Quail -- Pinot Noir or Merlot.

Lamb -- Cabernet Sauvignon, a Cabernet blend, and many Italian wines.

Beef Roast -- Cabernet Sauvignon, a Cabernet blend, or Syrah.

Anywhere Pinot Noir is mentioned other softer, lighter reds would work well such as Beaujolais, many Rhones and Rhone blends. Also, sparkling wines go with almost any meal and add to the festivities.

While we're talking about "softer, lighter" wines it's important to realize that for most of these dishes listed a wine that's lower in tannin, alcohol and acid than some is generally a better match.

Some Pinots and Zinfandels especially can be hot--too high in alcohol. Some younger Cabernets are too tannic. And for some dishes a very dry sparkler, Sauvignon Blanc or Sangiovese can be too acidic. This doesn't mean you don't want tannin, acid or alcohol, but it can't be overwhelming.

Chardonnay usually shouldn't be over-oaked or too buttery.

Happy Holidays!

Siduri / Novy Open House

Siduri is a well thought of Pinot Noir producer in Santa Rosa with a second label, Novy, for Syrahs. Each label makes a couple other things, but this is what they're known for.

A couple times a year they open up their warehouse for public tasting and some good sales.

My favorite was the 2008 Siduri Pisoni Vyds Pinot at $55. Pisoni is in Central CA. I bought the 2007 version of this wine last time.

But because only certain wines were on sale--and everybody is looking for good prices right now-- I bought the following:

2007 Siduri Amber Ridge Pinot Noir. Rich fruit, spice, and enough backbone to balance out.

2007 Siduri Keefer Pinot Noir. Not quite the strength of the Amber Ridge. A bit jammy, but should go for a year or two.

2006 Novy Napa Vly Syrah. Very good wine at a great sale price ($15).

2007 Novy Christensen Syrah. Nice fruit, spice, and depth.

Siduri makes reasonably priced Pinot labeled with a Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast, or Russian River appellation. These are usually around $25 and are great wines for the price.

A few Arizona (ARIZONA!?) winery stops

While visiting Tucson I went to four southern Arizona tasting rooms in the Sonoita/Elgin area between Tucson and the border. In fact, on the way back to Tucson we went through a Border Patrol stop manned by three guys about 30 miles north of Mexico (your tax dollars at work).

Many of the wines are from grapes brought in from California, but most were local grapes. They seem to be growing most everything from Sauvignon Blanc to Zinfandel. Tempranillo and Rhones also seem to do well. This is a high desert area, about 4500 ft. elevation.

Area vineyards. Photo taken Nov '09

Following are recollections from my four stops. I've listed the wineries from my least favorite to my favorite stop.

Rancho Rossa

They are the only estate vineyard in the area meaning they grow all their own fruit.

Across the board, except for the Cabernet, the wines are flawed. There is a very distinct, and bad, nose and taste to the wines. I sampled the Sauv Blanc and about six reds. Something in the soil? The water? Cellar? It was sort of a metallic, chemically taste. Somehow the Cab escaped this and was pretty decent.

Kief-Joshua

Sampling several reds I noticed most were from CA grapes. One that had the same nose and flavor flaw as the Rancho Rossa wines was made of grapes from Mendocino County per the label. The other wines were decent, but there was nothing I would have to take with me.

Canelo Hills

I tried several reds. The Sangiovese and Syrah were my favorites, but they were pretty good across the board. They were sold out of their Tempranillo that seems to be a favorite.

Callaghan

I samples several reds here, also. Most were blends and all were very good to excellent. Nice fruit in the wines; better than the other stops. It's possible they may leave a little residual sugar in them (I'm just guessing), but so what if it works? By far my favorites. And they get bonus points for using screw caps.

A number of Spanish and Rhone varietals in the blends; even a Petit Verdot based blend.

Don't have a corkscrew handy?

Here's how the resourceful French open a bottle

:)

Fall is in the Air!

October 26th Photos

Grapes in at Field Stone Winery, Alexander Valley

White Oak Vyds, Alexander Valley

Dry Creek Valley

Lytton Springs, Dry Creek Valley

Two Stops: Dry Creek and Matrix

Along Westside Road

Dry Creek Vineyards

Dry Creek has been around for a long time and has always been known for Zinfandel (as anyone in Dry Creek Valley should be). David Stare started the winery about 35 years ago and was well respected for his wines. His daughter is running the place now.

I counted 19 wines open in their tasting room! They are one of the few that still make a Chenin Blanc. The grapes are from Clarksburg (towards Sacramento). For some reason Chenin grows well there. If you haven't tried an American Chenin Blanc try this one.

The reason for stopping by was the night before I'd opened a 2001 Dry Creek reserve Zinfandel that was corked so I took it back to exchange.

I sampled the 2006 version that I got as a replacement plus three vineyard-designated Zinfandels. The Somers and Beeson Ranch Zins were outstanding (and $35). The '06 reserve I picked up to replace my '01 will need some time.

Matrix

They are part of the Wilson family of wineries--they own about five now and seem to be doing well. Matrix started with Meritage wines (Bordeaux-style blends) I believe, so I was surprised to find five Pinot Noirs on their tasting menu. The tasting room hostess said the Wilson family thought they should be making Pinots as the winery is in the Russian River Valley (just barely) -- an area well-known for Pinot Noir.

I liked all the Pinots and wound up taking the 2006 Nunes Reserve (Russian River Valley). Their wines are in the $30 to $45 range.

A bit of fall color at Matrix Winery

The Bottle Barn

And for what it's worth I made a stop at the local wine shop and picked up a couple $25 Pinots from Siduri and Melville plus a Zinfandel from Armida (Maple Lane, Tina's Block).

It's a beautiful day in the vineyards

Oct 16 Sonoma Valley

Top down cruisin' weather as things dry out and warm back up.

Oct 17 northern Napa County

Some varietals have pulled through last week's rains OK. This is Cabernet, I think.

More rain coming tomorrow though then warm and dry for the foreseeable future. The grapes need not only to dry, but to build their sugars back up to ripeness.

If you've never seen vineyards in their fall colors you should sometime. Main color season is early November, but it's well underway now.

Oh, oh, it's raining

The Growing Season in a Mediterranean Climate

The great thing about grape growing in CA is the dry weather during the growing season. But you can't always trust mother nature. Every year there seems to be something to annoy the farmers.

We had significant rain on October 13th in a relatively warm storm (think warm, moist rotting grapes). The next day was humid, but mostly dry. Here we are on the morning of the 15th and it's raining again.

Not all Grapes are Created Equal

Some grapes stand up better to dampness.

Cabernet is generally the last grape to come in, but also the skins and grape bunches dry out better.

The thinnest skinned grapes, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, are the earliest to be picked so are less likely to get rained on. (Isn't Mother Nature smart). Cabernet is usually the last to be picked.

Luckily, it has thick skins and relatively loose bunches--so less damage from bad weather and easier to dry out.

Another grape still hanging out there that's near-and-dear to the hearts of Sonoma County is Zinfandel. Zin doesn't do so well with the wetness. It ripens unevenly and tends to rot. Even in good time you'll find a bit of rot on the bunches.

In 2006 when we had some September rains some Zin never quite got ripe.

This year I know of one winery known for Zin that will remain nameless here that is probably losing a large percentage of their Zinfandel (they have Zin and Cab still hanging). The only good news is that the crop is much larger than last year so the total tonnage may be about the same as last -- though still below average.

So, pray for low humidity's and wind to dry out the grapes still hanging.

Sonoma County Harvest Fair

An annual three-day tasting for medal winners of grapes grown in Sonoma County. A huge number of medals were given out; almost every wine won something, but that's a subject for another time.

I don't have good descriptions because, well, it's kind of a madhouse and difficult to write down anything while standing and trying to hold on to your glass, awards booklet and a pen. I probably sampled 100 wines out of the hundreds available. All reds; no whites for me!

By mid-afternoon there's no room left to walk in the aisles.

Complete results are here.

The Good

Bordeaux-type Blends

Overall I was impressed with the quality of these. Easy to drink, but complex and interesting.

Trentadue 2005 Alexander Vly La Storia Meritage, $22

Their La Storia line are always excellent wines

Murphy-Goode 2005 Alexander Vly Claret All In, $45

Best of the Bordeaux-type blends I tried

De La Montanya 2006 Sonoma Co Tres Amour, $58

Pinot Noir

I love good Pinot, even more when I can find one for under $35. There was noting here that I have to rush out and buy.

De Loach 2007 Russian River Maboroshi Vyd, $45

The best of the Pinot I tried, but I was disappointed overall at the Pinots I had vs. their price.

Leveroni 2007 Sonoma Vly Seven Oaks Vyd, $18

A very drinkable one for the price

Ashton 2006 Sonoma Vly, $55

Great backbone, spices. Should age a bit.

Rhone-types

I generally love Californian Rhones. Usually very nice for the price.

Jus Soli 2007 Sonoma Co Roots Red, $20

A big, rich, excellent wine for the price.

I tried a couple other wines from Jus Soli. Never heard of them, but all were very good.

Sangiovese

A misunderstood variety, Made to stand up to spicy / acidic foods.

Viansa 2005 Sonoma Vly Thaila, $45

The best Sangi I've ever had, also the most expensive.

Syrah

A very nice job overall with the "other beef wine."

Davis Family 2007 Russian River Guyzer Block, $38

Needs some time yet

Loxton 2006 Russian River Archer Vyd $30

Spicy

Pena Ridge 2006 Dry Creek Piccetti Vyd, $44

Nice fruit

Longboard 2006 Russian River Dakine Vyd, $45

I've had and liked this one before and it stood up well here against others

Palmeri 2005 Alexander Vly Van Ness Vyd, $53

Well-balanced

Zinfandel

Sonoma's own

Armida 2005 Dry Creek Maple Vyd Tina's Block, $48 (a price drop from previous years)

A stand-out. Great balance, flavors, and a smoothness rather than heat like many Zins.

DH Gustafson 2007 Dry Creek Mountain Vyd, $36

If you like 'em big and ageable, but not the fruit bombs, then lay down this one. It's a big boy.

Fannucchi 2005 Russian River Old Vine, $40

A really well-done Zin. Probably my 2nd favorite Zin of the weekend behind the Armida Maple Vyds Tina's Block.

Stryker 2006 Knights Vly Speedy Creek Vyd, $34

Another great wine from Stryker. This one is a little rough on the finish so needs a bit more time.

Other Reds / Generics

Loved these blends too

Wilson 2007 Dry Creek Family Red Estate, $30

Another outstanding red from Wilson. Well worth the price.

Here's where it got interesting. Two other gold medal winners in this category were from Ravenswood & Ty Caton. What they have in common is they both retail for $75. The Ty Caton was very well done.

Then there was a Wellington gold medal-winning red called The Duke retailing for $8. This one is the QPR of the year for me. Wow, amazing for the price.

Petite Sirah

Sonoma's old time killer red. More manly than Syrah even.

Miro 2006 & 2007 Dry Creek, $23

Had these two vintages back-to-back and they do a nice job at a decent price.

Overall impressions

I really liked the Bordeaux-type blends and some of the varietals--Cab Franc & Malbec. Also, they're doing a good job with Syrah.

Favorites from the three day event:

-- Armida Maple Vyd Tina's Block Zinfandel

-- De Loach Russian River Maboroshi Vyd

-- Jus Soli Sonoma Co Roots Red (Rhone blend)

-- Murphy-Goode Alexander Vly Claret All In

-- Viansa Sonoma Vly Thaila Sangiovese

-- Wellington Sonoma Vly The Duke (red blend) at $8!

The Bad

Overall the Pinot Noirs had lousy quality for the prices. It didn't really matter if it was a $18 Pinot (those are hard to find) or $60 (easier to find). I've felt this way about the Pinots I've had at this event for the last couple years or so. The main element in a few Pinots and Syrahs was heat. And a few Zinfandels were this way too, but that's almost to be expected these days.

The Ugly

In order to enter a wine there has to be a certain level of availability so if someone wants to actually buy a medal winner they have a chance. Well, Adler Fels Winery took a chance; won big, then lost big. They won the red wine sweepstakes (best red wine) for a Pinot and then it turns out they were nearly out of that vintage. The fair board stripped them of their medal. Well, they got a lot of local publicity, at least.