Dallas Wine Chick

Beyond Safe Labels: Dallasites Take the Challenge

A few weeks ago, I was shocked to read a blog comment from The Wall Street Journal’s Lettie Teague about what Dallasites are drinking. Teague visited a Sigel’s Fine Wine shop in Frisco and was told by manager Tim Farina that we only drink big cabernets and big brands.

Whaaaaatttt? While I don’t personally follow the steak to cabernet sauvignon rule, I can understand a local steakhouse having a larger selection of those wines. So, I decided to go for a sanity check. I reached out to Terri Burney, owner of  WineTastic, who told me that while she has some customers that would fit the bill, even more are trying Malbec, Rioja, Albarino and Champagne.

Brooks Anderson, owner of  Veritas, had some great insights. “To say that Dallasites drink only overpriced, big labels of Cab and Chard is absolutely ridiculous and wholly inaccurate. If that were true, Veritas would have gone out of business long ago. We do not carry Cakebread; we do not currently carry Silver Oak; we do not currently carry Caymus; we do not currently carry Far Niente; we do not carry Nickel & Nickel; etc. Instead we carry lots of fun, boutique Cabs and Chards (and other wines from around the globe) that aren’t necessarily cheap and we sell them all day long. There are plenty of Dallasites who love to explore new labels, who would rather offer a delicious wine that their dinner guest has never heard of rather than an overpriced ‘label’.”

He went on to say that “in addition to ‘not cheap’ Cabs and Chards, we sell loads of Chateauneuf du Pape, Brunello, Barolo, Barbaresco, Burgundy, Amarone, Sancerre, etc. Dallasites are trying inexpensive wines like White Rioja; White Bordeaux; Gavi; Albarino/Alvarhino; Cotes du Rhone; Spanish Garnacha; Carmanere; Malbec; Baby Super Tuscans; Nero d’Avola; etc.”

So, where do we go from here? We need to take a stand. While there is a place for Cabernets, Chardonnays and other mainstays in our lives, let’s try some new varietals.

I had the recent opportunity to meet Anne-Laure Helfrich of Helfrich wines to try wines produced in her family’s Alsatian vineyard. The price points were fantastic — $14.99 for the Noble Tier wines that were really good (Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gerwürztraminer). The Grand Cru wines with the same varietals were fantastic and priced at $24.99. The Grand Cru Riesling was elegant with orange blossom, apricot and minerality. The Grand Cru Gewurztraminer had a floral nose with honeysuckle, citrus and a floral nose. I personally am adding these to my wine “off the beaten path” selection list.

In Dallas, you can find these wines at Whole Foods, Costco, Majestic Liquors (Fort Worth), Winestyles (Arlington and Fort Worth), Vino 100 and Veritas.

Let’s prove to Tim that we’ve moved from a “safe label zone” and into wine drinkers that have the courage to put an unfamiliar bottle on the table.

Can’t Drive 55!

This was the photo that I got from my lead footed husband as he made the solo drive from the Portland Airport to join me on a tour through Prosser, Red Mountain and Yakima.  I was lucky enough to have one of the top experts, Margot, and her husband, Dave,  show us Washington “wine o’clock” style.

You see, John didn’t join me until after #wbc10 was over. He’s a bourbon boy from the South and while he has a strong appreciation of wine and a collection that reinforces that point, seven days of wine tasting would render him to a state where he would want to poke his eyes out with a fork.  For the sake of our marriage and my enjoyment of the experience, he arrived late on Sunday. 

Unfortunately he missed out on some wonderful experiences.  Our first stop was family-owned L’Ecole. The name, L’Ecole Nº 41 is French for “the school”.  The winery is located in district 41 in historic Frenchtown, a small community outside of Walla Walla that was named for the many French Canadians that settled there in the early 1800s. 

We arrived at the converted schoolhouse that serves as the tasting room and were greeted by Jamie, a fun new friend who hosted us for a fantastic vertical tasting of library wines.  We began with a refreshing glass of the 08 Estate Luminesce ($19) that I loved, but alas, it was completely sold out.  We then tasted the 99, 03 and 07 Apogee from Pepper Bridge Vineyard and the 03 and 07 Estate Perigee from Seven Hills Vineyard.  I personally loved the Apogee – especially the earlier vintages that tasted of earthiness, black cherry, cassis and notes of chocolate.  The evolution in the glass was noteworthy and I left with a case of my own to taste test in the future.

Our next stop was to Va Piano Vineyards to meet Winemaker Justin Wylie.  Its motto: “Chi va piano, va sano e va lontano.” The translation is “He who goes slowly, goes safely and goes far” – an old Italian saying and the winery’s approach to living. This recommendation came from Greg Kassanoff, who owns Pioneer Wine here in Dallas.  We started with two Brunos Blend I and VI wines, one Sauvignon Blanc and one red blend as well as the Semillon.  Father Bruno Segatta, who Justin met during his time at Gonzaga University, is an artist and selfless priest.  Father Segatta inspired Justin to give back to the community. When the Bruno blends are sold out, Va Piano donates a portion of the proceeds to a charity of Father Bruno’s choice.  We tried two Syrah’s – the 07 Syrah and 08 Estate Syrah, which were inky black, spicy and fabulous.  But it was the 07 Cabernet that made me a card carrying member of Va Piano’s wine club.  At $38 a bottle, it rivaled some of Napa’s heavy hitters currently in my cellar.  Let’s just say that I cancelled my Far Niente membership because I liked it that much (the rule in my house is that if I add a wine club, I must cancel a wine club – actually my husband made up this rule after one particular Visa bill).

The next day, we made a brief stop at Airfield Wines where my favorite wine was the Aviator ( $30). It was a big Bordeaux style blend and since my cousin is in process of finalizing his clearance to be a fighter pilot, I loved the history of the winery.

The next day we headed to visit Alexandria Nicole Cellars.  Because Margot and Dave were wine club members, we were given VIP treatment and access to the back room, where we tried more than 16 wines on their tasting list – we even showed restraint as they have 21 varietals.  My favorites included the 07 Jet Black Syrah, 09 Rousanne, 08 Quarry Butte (ah Quarry Butte…), 07 Cabernet and 08 Crawford Viognier.  We also had the chance to sample some older vintages – the 03 and 05 cabernets and merlots from Alexandria Nicole’s enomatics system.  Again, the evolution in the glass and the changes over a two-year period were notable.

Then it was time for lunch.  I was excited to finally meet Scott who has been a long-time friend on Twitter, but I wasn’t prepared for the red carpet that was rolled out by my new Washington friends.  We went to eat at Tuscany and were met by Coop, Sara and Kevin.  Coop brought a bottle of his not yet released 08 Pinot Gris and it paired perfectly with the delicious food.

Mark your calendars for the debut of Cooper Wine Company’s Red Mountain grand opening on Sept. 11.  If his Bordeaux-style reds rival the Pinot Gris, you won’t be sorry. 

We left Tuscany and I had the chance to experience Fidelitas Wines in Red Mountain.  We originally planned to visit several wineries on Red Mountain, but were drawn in by Charlie Hoppes’ big red wines at Fidelitas Wines along with the hospitality of Marilyn and Cindy.  Let’s just say that another case of wine now has a home in Dallas that includes the 07 Red Mountain Cabernet Franc ($40), the 07 Jaguar red ($20), 2007 Champoux Vineyard Cabernet  ($60) and 07 Red Mountain Red ($50).   

P.S. Here is a photo of the not debuted yet packaging…

Our last and final stop was Sean Gilbert at Gilbert Cellars in Yakima where we tasted an array of reds, whites and a Rose’ of Mourvedre paired with cheeses, olives and Marcona almonds.  While I enjoyed every one of his wines, it was the 07 Cabernet Sauvignon ($28) and 07 Cabernet Franc ($32) that will be joining us in Dallas once the Texas heat has diminished.

Sean also talked us out of our dinner selection and sent us to an unmarked sports bar with a hunter complete with a scoped rifle as the signage.  Thankfully we trusted him and enjoyed a great dinner with a bottle of Gilbert Cellars’ Malbec.  We ended the evening hanging out with Margot and Dave in their room where we told stories and toasted a wonderful trip with a few special favorite wines.