Dallas Wine Chick

Post Conference Tour: #WBC12, Carlton Without Handcuffs

And then it was over.  Just like that.  But thankfully my post trip was about to begin.  The town of Carlton, where I had spent the #cuffedincarlton wine tour trip, was willing to have a group of us back for a two-day excursion with some of my most favorite wine bloggers.  We were picked up by the rocking party bus from the Doubletree with Motown music, couches and comfy seating where we were transported to Carlton’s “Walk in the Park” event featuring more than 30 Oregon wineries.  The event brought together some of Yamhill County’s best wineries and gave me the opportunity to spend some extra quality time with some of the people behind my favorite wines. 

A special shout out to Ken  Morrison from K&M, who was such an avid student on how to Tweet and was kind enough to continue the crazy chicken legacy.  BTW, he and his partner, Mauro Hernandez, make some pretty rocking Pinots that I can’t wait to receive once the weather breaks in Texas and my shipment arrives.

Lynn and Amy generously hosted us at Republic of Jam for cocktails and fabulous appetizers.  It was so fun to see the store that has become such a destination point and their vision brought to life.   I loved the craft cocktails made with so many of their products; they were just delicious. 

We had dinner at the Horse Radish, well those did that didn’t have a pork allergy (Carlton definitely loves its pork products), but they gave me a really nice salad and I was able to sneak across the street for a great turkey sandwich that I snuck into the hotel James Bond style.  I was able to share a bottle of Retour, one of my favorite Pinot Noirs who is owned by a dear friend of mine.

Marcy and I were assigned to the Casa della Valle B&B where we met Eve and Joe, the sweetest and kindest couple that treated us like dear friends.  Joe is an avid collector of some of the most classic toys and xxx has a huge collection of antiques.  Marcy and I had a blast getting to know them, learning about how they decided to start a B&B and finding more about their collections.  We were so excited to have been assigned to the B&B so we could get to know such an interesting couple (and the breakfast absolutely rocked).

The next morning, we had a private tour with Ken Wright, who in my mind is one of the “father’s” of Oregon Pinot.  Because there have been really great discussions on other blogs by attendees of WBC12 about Oregon terrior,  I have no need to recreate my version, so I’ll just talk more about Ken’s point of view from that day.  He talked about the wines doing so well because all of the conditions are right for Pinot Noir and the depth and how where the grapes are planted matter.  He called others to task who are growing Pinot grapes on the floor of the valley making poor wines and hurting the Oregon wine industry.  Ken has earned the right to have an opinion. 

He talked about how nutrition is key to making great wine and the plant is the ultimate report card.  Ken told a great story about seeking out a farmer in Washington State who was responsible for growing a specific apple for the Japanese market who had 15-acres dedicated to doing only that.  Ken and his team visited the farmer who at the beginning of their discussion peeled one of his apples and took them on a tour of the vineyard.  When they returned, the apple had not aged a bit and was “freaking unbelievable.”  This further solidified that each plant must be allowed to take its fruit to the ultimate stage.  Microbiology and protecting the fruit is so important – not only for wine, but for the fruits and vegetables that we eat daily.

We tried two of his wines – the Ken Wright Cellars Abbott Claim, Yamhill-Carlton AVA, which was lush with stone fruit, cassis and spice.  Our next wine was the Ken Wright Cellars Carter, Eola-Amity AVA, which was much more mellow in nature with blueberry, cherry and plum.  Totally different vineyard, totally different terrior and elevation.  Cool experiment!

Our next stop was Lemelson Vineyards, a 160 acre, carbon-neutral facility, focused on producing certified organic wines.  The winery owns seven estate vineyard sites located in Yamhill-Carlton, Dundee Hills and Chehalem Mountain.  We started with a glass of 2011 Dry Riesling, which was full of tropical notes and was very enjoyable.  We then toured “the Starship Enterprise,” the winery’s gravity flow facility designed by Steve Cornish, who also designed Palmaz Vineyards (link).  After we climbed up the ladder of this high tech wonder with our glass of 2010 Tikka’s Run Pinot Gris, I didn’t time my ladder climb with the person ascending before me and ended up covered with Pinot Gris and a broken glass.  Lesson learned – make sure you get your timing right if climbing a ladder with a glass of wine in hand. 

Anthony King, the wine maker and his wife Kara, talked about the collegial community of winemakers in the region.  We then tasted some of the same wines aged in different coopers – such a cool experience and it becomes easy to see why a winemaker pays $1,100 for a high-end barrel – aromas, flavors, smells are all different.  We adjourned to the porch and had the opportunity to taste several wines (most of which I ended up ordering – you will find that was a common theme of this day).

• We tried the 2010 Thea’s Selection Pinot Noir (which of course I had to bring a bottle to @winebratsf , that was named after Dorothy (Eric’s mom), who wanted to be called Thea.  It was earthy, cherry and full of licorice.
• Our next wine was the 2009 Mt. Richmond Vineyard Pinot Noir, which was very floral with bright fruit.
• The 2009 Johnson Vineyard Pinot Noir was next, which needed some bottle time, but was full of rich notes and big fruit. 
• We moved to the 2010 Jerome Reserve Pinot Noir, which is made of a different blend every year, and was my favorite Pinot.  Big depth, dark fruit and a fabulous wine. 
• We ended with 2009 Oeneous Dessert Riesling with figs, which was a ridiculously fantastic match.

Our next stop was lunch at Cuvee, several tart flambées prepared by Chef Gilbert Henry, which happily did not contain all pork products.  The veggie and salmon ones made me very happy.  Belle Pente, Alexana and Carlo and Julia joined us for lunch and talked briefly about the wines that were paired with the lunch. 

I sat across from Felix Madrid, the owner and winemaker of Carlo and Julia, who talked about naming the winery after his twin sons (now 23!).  At five, his child smelled one of the wines and remarked, “dad, this smells like perfume.”  A child after my own heart and probably a pillar in the family business.

Then we did a speed dating of sorts with a number of wineries.  I don’t think that Carlton understood how much we liked their wines and we slowed down the schedule when we insisted on buying at every stop.  We visited Carlton Cellars, Valley Emporium, Noble Pig (loved the food/wine pairings), Terra Vina, Mouvance and Troon (super interesting and non-traditional wines like meritage, zinfandel and port).  I would have loved another hour at each place.

Thank you again to the City of Carlton, “the wine capital of Oregon” for rolling out the red carpet and making this group of bloggers feel special.  Your town has so much to offer and I can say with certainty that I will be returning as soon as possible.

Day Two, Wine Bloggers Conference 2012: 42 Hours of Wine, Key Learnings and Post Parties

Bless me father, for I have sinned.  I went to bed at 2 a.m. and needed to exercise, so I did.  And based upon what is waiting around every corner of the Wine Bloggers Conference, you’ll understand why.  Here is my roomie, Liza’s, morning breakfast of a lovely French wine and Voodoo Donuts.

While I missed the first session, I started my day with a session entitled “the winery view of wine bloggers” with Sasha Kady of Kings Estate, Christopher Watkins of Ridge Vineyards and Ed Thralis of Wine Tonight.  Sasha, Christopher and Ed are well known, well respected and well integrated wine people in the world of social media and what they had to say was a validation that my many unpaid hours spent on a passion made a difference.  The conversation was two-way; because that’s what these guys know how to do well, and why they are at the top of wineries that bloggers want to engage with in a meaningful way.

We had a very quick lunch at a food truck lot in Portland, where I had a fabulous Korean taco with extra, extra, extra spicy sauce.  As someone who usually is written off on spicy, this stand complied and I was very excited – especially for $5.50.

I attended “The Art of Oregon Pinot – A Clonal Tasting, which was a total wine geek tasting that I so enjoyed.  So basically, clones are separate organisms that are genetically identical to their predecessor, which is paramount to creating wines that reflect the qualities of different clones in Oregon Pinot Noirs.  Erath hosted our clonal tasting where we discussed the different terriors in Oregon and why the clones where so different.  We tried Pinot clones from Wädenswil and Pinot Noir Pommard as well as new Pinot Noir clones developed in France and at UC Davis to address disease problems and later to isolate vineyard characteristics such as early ripening, open clusters, and small berries including “115,” which had lots of red raspberry, red fruits and tasted of black pepper; “777,” with black fruits and vegetal notes, which was described as “slutty”; the Pommard UCD 4 clone, my favorite, which stood alone as a traditional Oregon pinot; and the blend, which incorporated  spice, but was rough at a young age. 

We moved on to the “Off the Beaten Path” seminar presented by Winebow with Sheri Sauter Morano, MW, and the most humbling session of the conference.  We had a blind tasting of seven wines, which I began with confidence, but ended with the realization that I have so much to learn.  In order, we tried the following wines:

1.  Itasad Mendi, Hondarribi Zuri 2011 – Bizkaiko Txakolina is a small denomination that covers wines in the province of Vizcaya in Spain.  The wine is full of citrus, tropical and zesty minerality that left me guessing on a new wine, grape and region.
2. Argiolas S’elagas Nuragus di Cagliari 2010 – apple, floral, nutty, floral with stone fruit.  This Sardinian wine kept me guessing.
3. Cousino- Macul Sauvignon Gris 2011 – Maipo Valley in Chile.  Almost candy-like with starfruit, smoky notes with a crisp acidity.  A very interesting wine.
4. Librandi Duca San Felice Ciro Rosso Riserva 2009 – Calabria in Italy.  Earthy, mocha, red cherry, kirsch, tobacco and a bit of meat.  Lots of structure.
5. Weingu Heinrich Zweigelt 2008 – Austria.  Strawberry, all spice, red fruit and an earthiness that was unique.
6. Bodegas Nieto Senetiner Reserva Bonardoa 2010 – aka known as Charbono, but only in Argentina.  Plums, raspberries, spice and oak with lots of tannins. 
7. Anima Negra An 2008 – Mallorca in Spain.  Meat, cedar, earth and leather. 

Key learning here – no matter what you think you know about wine, there is a blind tasting out there to make you realize you know nothing.  And with the exception of the last wine listed, this is a fun exercise with the most expensive bottle listed at $25, but many at least $10 below that price.

After that, Rex Pickett, author of Sideways, took the stage.  Here is my picture.  I’m sure someone else will dedicate ink to his discussion.  I will not.

I wish I had more time to join the reception for the Wines of Greece, but everything was running behind and I only had about ten minutes to spend to find out I need to know more about the wines of Santorini. 

There were a few folks who bagged on the wine dinner hosted by King Estate.  Shame, shame, shame.  This was a wine dinner that brought together the best of wine, food and social media and was seamlessly organic.   We started with a salad of fennel with heirloom tomato, grilled corn and duck breast prosciutto with the 2011 NxNW Horse Heaven Hills Riesling. 

Our next course was the confit of spot prawns with a cucumber, roasted peach and opal basil with the 2011 King Estate Signature Pinot Gris, a delightful and refreshing wine that paired perfectly with the course. 

We then went to a wild Chinook salmon with garlic sausage (except for me – thank you for asking), potato gnocchi, buttered leeks and aged balsamic with 2010 King Estate Signature Pinot Noir.  Another divine match.

The next course was a roasted top loin of beef with wild mushroom, Yukon potato and shallot marmalade with the 2009 NxNW Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 

The dessert course was a lemon panna cotta with summer berries and lavender syrup with a 2010 King Estate Riesling Vin Glace.  It was a brilliant display of social media, showcasing local farmers and sources and highlighting all that Oregon has to offer.

We quickly ducked into the International Wine Night, which unfortunately probably got shorted due to the dinner running over by about 90 minutes.  Then it was time for the after-parties, which I had opt out on some as they were too numerous to attend all of them.

• We went to the Holy Grail of Alsace Riesling party, which featured vintages from 1997, 1999, 2000 and 2001 including Trimbach’s Close Ste Hune, a great single vintage Riesling.  I was lucky enough to try everything but the 2000, and it was a nice reminder of how great Alsace Grand Cru Rieslings stand the test of time.  They aren’t called “somm candy” without reason.

• There was a vertical tasting of Oregon magnums with some that weren’t represented at the conference, so it was fun to try some new vintages.
•  #Get Vertical by Palm Bay Wines – this was a fun opportunity to taste verticals of international wines including Bertani (Bertani Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOC, 1980, 1993 and 2004); Col D’Orcia (Col d’Orcia Brunello di Montalcino DOG, 1980, 1997 and 2007);  Faustino (Faustino Gran Reserva Rioja DOC, 1964, 1982 and 1999); Jean-Luc Colombo (Jean-Luc Colombo “Les Ruchets” Cornas AOC, 2001, 2005, 2007 and 2009); and Trimbach (Timbach Riesling “Cuvee Frederic Emile” Alsace AOC, 2000 and 2001).  I really wish that this wasn’t my second to the last stop as there were some great wines that I would have liked to savor more, but thank you Palm Bay Wines for the experience.

• Jordan – this event has brought many bloggers to their knees on Sunday morning and is always the party never to miss.  Lisa brought a wide array of Jordan’s best vintages, right off of their 40^th anniversary.  These were wines to remember (or perhaps some attending did not).

I’ll end this post with a full disclosure and an introduction to “Crazy Chicken.”  I travel the world for my day job and so my seven-year-old daughter asked me to bring a toy and take pictures so she can experience my journey.  The chicken has traveled with me from London to Stockholm to Singapore and finally to Portland, where he has adventures – clearly tonight he spent too much time at the after-parties (and no, those photos aren’t shared with her).  Look for him in the return to Carlton winery post-trip.

#WBC 12: Evening Festivities, Speed Tasting, Peruvian Food & Cuffed in Carlton

After the fun pre-trip to Salem, our bus pulled up for the long awaited start of the Wine Bloggers Conference, but not without a lung stopping beginning.  All the rooms at the Doubletree were deemed non-smoking except for the non-compliant guest that stayed our room prior to our arrival.  I went up to the room first and Liza, my roommate, generously offered to get the wine we had stored with the bellhop.  I walked into the room and the wall of smoke hit me.  I called down to the front desk, but when Liza walked in and saw me standing by the open window with the patio window open thought she had busted a closet smoker.  The Doubletree quickly moved us to another room and generously hauled our stash of wine to the next place.

We started our day prior to the conference with a long-awaited tasting of Two Shepherds Wine, which is owned by my friend, William Allen (a.k.a Wine MacGyver for his endless supply of wine glasses and accessories at previous conferences).  Many of us who write about wine dream, “If Iever make the jump into the wine making world, would I have what it takes?” – and knowing that William has a job as encompassing as mine as a software sales executive – I am incredibly impressed.  His premise is to make Rhone varieties that reflect their sense of place and shine when blended. 

We started with the Two Shepherds 11 Grenache Blanc, which tasted of melon, citrus and lemon with some minerality on the end.  Then we tasted the 11 Viognier with a floral nose, but with nice acidity.  Our next stop was the 11 Pastoral Blanc, which was a blend of Roussanne, Marsanne, Viognier and Grenache Blanc, with notes of citrus and pear.  This wine begged for some king crab.  We tasted the 10 Syrah/Mourvedre blend with lots of berry and pepper and then a barrel sample of the Grenache.  One word – wow.  Based on what I tasted, I can say with certainty that you will be reading about Two Shepherds very soon – get on the list now because this is truly a small production winery destined for very good things.

We stopped by the welcome session, which was hosted by the Oregon Wine Board, and were given a snapshot of what we had to look forward to during the week and served as a long-awaited reunion of bloggers. 

That night, we were invited to an intimate event to get a glimpse of Oregon’s wine history featuring 02-08 vintages from past years of the Portland Indie Wine Festival with some wines from some of Oregon’s top winemakers. The 5-year-old festival, which is on hold this year, but is sure to be back in 2013, is a project that brings together up and coming independent wine producers with music and food.  We were picked up by the good people of Watershed and brought to a “speakeasy” bar at Portland Wine Storage.  The vibe was cool, the wines were great, the change during the different harvests (lots of rain in 2004 for example vs. the coolest season on record in 2008) and it was fun to sit one-on-one and talk to winemakers from Harry Peterson-Nedry from Chehalem, Lynn Penner-Ash from Penner-Ash and Ben Thomas from Montinore.  And then it was 2 a.m. – welcome to the reality of the Wine Blogger’s Conference….

I’m not going to give a moment by moment recap about the event because there are some really good ones already out there such as Randall Grahm’s speech by Ben Simons or the great write-up of the “Ready, Fire, Aim” live wine blogging by Winemundo.  

But, I will mention the wheels off lunch that I had with David Honig and Liza at Andina, the best Peruvian restaurant that I have ever tried. 

In the afternoon, we were marched out to buses where we randomly selected our wine region tour for the duration of the evening.  We totally scored getting one of the best tours with a group of people whom I absolutely adore.  Zephyr won’t tell you where you are going until the bus is moving so we were very excited to hear that we were going to Carlton, “the wine Capital of Oregon.”  Thanks to Mary Cressler and Thea Dwelle’s invitation in 2010, I had the chance to get to know Amy Wilder and Lynette Shaw during my last trip to Oregon when Amy introduced me to Voodoo Donuts and Lynette introduced me to Willamette Valley.  A friendship was quickly born. 

About 40 minutes into our journey I spotted a police car on the side of the road with a male and female officer in the car.  I made a comment to my seatmate right as the lights were turned on in the police car.  An officer boarded the bus and told us we needed to disembark due to a “situation,” which turned out to be a brilliantly executed PR ploy. 

And, so we began our #cuffedincarlton journey.  What the officer, who turned out to be the chief of police, did not bank on, were the comments about his attractiveness.  Female bloggers, thinking that perhaps he might be an actor or had a side job in Magic Mike, had fun writing about him.  Sorry Chief Kevin.

We stopped at the lovely Carlo & Julian winery where we were served 09 Albarino that was flinty and perfect for the hot weather – especially with the tuna and three pepper sauce that was served with it.  We walked to the vineyards where we had a beautiful cheese and bread plate served with the 09 Tempranillo.  I was surprised to see these two wines in Oregon, but they were tasty and made Joe ponder.

We then met Ken Wright, one of the father’s of Oregon wine, who talked about the geography of Carlton and Yamhill.  I’ll talk a little more in detail in a later post, since we were lucky enough to spend the morning with Ken on a post conference visit. 

Our dinner stop was at Cielo Blu and once again we had no idea what was waiting for us.  Imagine a room packed with “evidence” against us with the top chefs in Carlton and the top wineries ready to match a nine course meal with 26 of the region’s best wines.  Mary Cressler and I decided that we had to try everything and gamely set out to keep our palates sharp and our sobriety up. 

Our first course “or Evidence No. 1” was Chinook salmon from Pacific City cooked on a traditional Salish bake, which was an alder wood frame over an open fire by Chef Jeff Lorton from Valley Emporium.  We got to sample the 2011 Youngberg Hill Aspen Pinot Gris, the 2009 Noble Pig Pinot Noir, the 2010 Omero Iliad Pinot Noir, the 2010 Alexana Revana Vineyard Pinot Noir and the 2010 Ghost Hill Pinot Noir Blanc.  It was hard to choose a favorite, but I really liked the 2011 Youngberg Hill Pinot Gris as the match.

Our second course “or Evidence No. 2” was a duck confit salad with apple, fennel, candied nuts and an orange balsamic dressing from Chef Chloe Couchee from the Horse Radish.  We tried the 2011 Omero Pinot Gris, the 2011 MonksGate Rose of Pinot Noir, the 2008 Mouvance Pinot Noir Julon Vineyard and the 2008 EIEIO Pinot Noir. 

I liked all of these wines, but have to give a shout out to MonksGate for making the first and only rose that I have ever, ever, ever liked.  For those of you who know me, this is an accomplishment equal to pigs flying.

I abstained from the third course “or Evidence No. 3,” which was a Carlton Farms pork loin stuffed with herbs, garlic and onions served with Northwest Succotash from Chef Gilbert Henri of Cuvee, because I am allergic.  I have to say the people in Carlton love their pork, but see more about that later.  Our wine choices were the 2011 Troon Vineyard Vermentino, the 07 MonksGate Pinot Noir, the 2010 Alexana Revana Vineyard Riesling and the 2008 Youngberg Hill Jordan Pinot Noir.  The favorite pairing was the 2010 Alexana Revana Riesling, which surprised me as I thought it was destined to be a Pinot Noir.

Our fourth course “or Evidence No. 4” was braised short ribs in a red wine, rosemary tomato sauce with creamy rosemary polenta from Chef Bonifacio Solorzano from Cielo Blu.  We tried the 2005 Spofford Station Estate Syrah, the 07 Cliff Creek Cellars Cabernet Franc, the 2009 WildAire Cellars Reserve Pinot Noir and the 2009 Terra Vina Bella Vista Red Vinters Blend.  My favorite with the course was the 2009 WildAire Cellars Reserve Pinot Noir.

Our fifth course “or Evidence No. 5” was a grilled flank steak with blue cheese butter and peppered D’affinois mashed potatoes from Chef Sean David from The Horse Radish.  This was served with the 2010 Seven of Hearts Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre Cuvee, the WildAire Cellars Tempranillo (no year given) and the 2009 K&M Alchemy Cuvee Pinot Noir.  My favorite was a tie between the 2010 Seven of Hearts and the 2008 K&M Alchemy.

As if we hadn’t had enough, it was time for a cheese plate served with the 2010 Mouvance Pinot Gris and dark chocolate currant-cabernet ganache made by Dana Dooley with Honest Chocolates served with the 2005 Spofford Station Estate Cabernet Sauvignon and 2009 Troon Vineyard Meritage.  Yum!

Then, the desserts from Chef Amy Wilder, Republic of Jam, a cardamom cake with port preserved plums and dulce de leche cream with the 2010 Seven of Hearts Pinot Noir Coupe’s Cuvee.  Andone of the best desserts that I have ever had, the chocolate blue cheese cheesecake with cherries preserved in balsamic syrup served the same wines matched with the chocolate.  After we experienced every single bit of hometown hospitality in Carlton, we rolled (pun intended) on home. 

Perhaps my plan of moderation didn’t work (ya think…?) My apologies for starting the return sing-a-long on the bus home, but at least I kept it to show tunes and bad songs from the 70’s and 80’s.  Most of the people on the bus still talk to me, so that’s a good thing.

The reality at this point is that you should be done, you should go home, you should get some rest.  But, the post parties were just beginning.  We had the night of Many Bottles, where bloggers brought some of their favorites to share and there were hopes of a dance party (my contribution: 2 drained, one corked); a special tasting of Randall Grahm wines; the bubble and champagne lounge by Pernod Ricard and a few other late night happenings in which bloggers shared some of their favorite wines with a smaller group of people.  After making the rounds, I showed some restraint about 1 a.m. and retired fat and happy knowing I’d be running in the morning, which was not a a fun reality, but necessary with the food/wine consumed.

Winebow Wines of Summer: Fun to Be Had Off the Beaten Path

When I received a package from Winebow with Summer whites that were off the beaten path, I was totally stoked. I gathered a group of my closest wine buddy girlfriends, we assembled a spread to match and we were off to the races. The pack included Pinot Grigio and Riesling as well as Vermentino and Torrontés from several regions. We tried the following wines:

• Tilia Torrontés, Argentina 2011 – $10: We tasted herbs and honeysuckle with a floral nose.
• Clean Slate Riesling, Mosel 2011 – $10: This one had some residual sweetness but notes of lime and peach with minerality.
• Root:1 Sauvignon Blanc 2011 – $12: This was the group favorite with tropical fruit, grapefruit, grassiness and mineral notes.
• Vitiano Bianco (Vermentino & Verdicchio) Umbria 2011 – $12: Tropical, fruity and very light in body from Umbria, a region I had not experienced yet in Italy.
• KRIS Pinot Grigio, delle Venezia 2011 – $14: This was a very fruity pinot grigio that stayed true to the variety.
• Argiolas Costamolino Vermentino, Sardinia 2011 -$16: Very crisp with tropical fruit. This wine had a bit of effervescence at the finish.

This was a fun reminder that there are bargains and new regions to try once you step out of your usual wine comfort zone.

California Wine Club Brings the Valley to You

I was recently asked to take part in Mom Spark Media’s blog review campaign for the California Wine Club.  I felt I was very qualified due to the creative budgeting I used to do with my husband when I went to wine country.  I thought that wine club sign ups “didn’t count towards my wine budget” until one fateful day when my Visa card was hit with eleven charges and my finance guy husband was not amused.

The California Wine Club has been around for over 20 years and specializes in hand-selected artisan wines from family-owned producers.  I was given a three-month Premium Club membership, which features wines from smaller producers and is valued at $150 ($50 per shipment).  I had a slight mix up with my first month, so month one and two arrived within one week.  Each shipment includes two boots of wine and a newsletter outlining the winery, food pairing suggestions and the club’s tasting notes, recipes and other reading material.

• 10 Tobin James “Radiance” Monterey County Chardonnay – We were with a group of friends and one eloquently pointed out that “the label matched the taste.”  It was a bright wine with lots of apple, pear, pineapple and citrus with just a touch of oak.  It was creamy and had a good balance.  Definitely was a crowd pleaser.  $18.00 retail, $10.99 club price.
• 08 Tobin James Titan Hills Vineyards “Fiasco” – This wine from Paso Robles tasted of licorice, Asian spices, spice and pepper.  It was juicy, but smooth and easily drinkable.  $11.99 club price, $20.99 retail.
• 2010 Fess Parker Santa Barbara County Riesling – this semi-sweet wine has lots of lychee, mango, lemon and other bright summer fruits.  It was off-dry, but still a vibrant wine with acidity.  $26.00 retail, $12.99 club price.
• 2010 Parker Station Pinot Noir tastes of black cherries, vanilla, cranberry and terrior.  This is a very food friendly and approachable wine.

Interesting factoid:  Fess Parker Winery was established in 1989 by the late actor Fess Parker, who was known for his roles as Walt Disney’s Davey Crockett and Daniel Boone in the 1950′s and 60′s, and the winery remains a family business.

If you like trying “off the beaten path wines” that you probably can’t easily track down in Texas, this could be a great fit for you.  The $50 per month price tag includes shipping and is a fair price for the club, especially if you like the wines and plan to reorder them.  The accompanying information not only told you more about the wines and winery, but gave you recipes to pair to fully complement your tasting experience.

If you want to give it a try, the California Wine Club is offering Dallas Wine Chick readers four bottles for the price of 2 when you sign up. Use the code vine12 at checkout.

Click Here to visit the California Wine Club’s website.  Click here to check out @cawineclub and @boringwineguy on Twitter.

Disclosure: This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media.

Old World Cabernet Meets New World Chef: A Dinner to Remember

I know I’ve said this before, but I’m very lucky through this blog to meet some of the best storytellers, winemakers and chefs in the business.   I also get an opportunity through this blog and from my husband’s foodie love affair to eat some of the best meals in the city.  Because of that, it takes me a great deal to take pause.  My dinner at the Gaylord did just that.

When I was personally invited by Joanne Bondy, executive chef of the Old Hickory Steakhouse at the Gaylord to attend the Palmaz dinner, I was excited, but a little taken aback.  Most executive chefs of Joanne’s caliber aren’t issuing personal invitations to wine dinners. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Joanne, she received Esquire’s rating of 20 best restaurants in 2001 and cooked at the James Beard House in New York City three times.  And, this was the preview dinner for her October James Beard dinner paired with some of the best Napa cabernets out there.

While I’ve been to the Gaylord before, it was always around a special occasion brunch because my parents live in Flower Mound.  To this Dallas gal, it was a bit of a haul especially after having a few glasses of wine.  Get a cab, get a car, get a sober driver – this is definitely worth the ride.

Saddiq Mir, vice president of food and beverage at the Gaylord, kicked off the dinner by introducing Joanne and Florencia Palmaz.  Joanne cracked us up with stories about celebrating the tenth anniversary in 2011 at the winery with stories about Amalia Palmaz, the matriarch of the family, on a four wheeler with her Prada shoes.  She also described a paella pan so large that it was stirred with a boat oar and when it became dark, the guests used mobile phones to provide light.  Just classic.

I was lucky enough to visit Palmaz a few years ago and was totally impressed with the wines and technology behind the winery.  There’s a huge tie to Texas.  Julio Palmaz, a doctor by profession, was in process of developing a heart stint at University of California Davis but couldn’t get research funds so he moved to the University of Texas in 1984 to continue his research.  While in California, Julio and Amalia had spent the weekends visiting wine country in Napa.  After moving to Texas, they attended a wine festival in Poteet, Texas, where Amalia decided they would be moving immediately back to Napa after trying the wine if the stint was a success.

In 1986 that happened and they returned to Napa to buy one of the last pre-prohibition wineries which formerly was a brothel and had made no wines since 1912.  The home’s original owner, Henry Hagen, one of Napa’s first winemakers, produced award-winning wines in the 1800s at Cedar Knoll Vineyard and Winery, but Prohibition killed his business. The winery fell into disrepair and the vineyards were forgotten for almost 80 years until the Palmaz family saw their potential.

Florencia talked about the 28 years that they spent in Texas, how it felt like home and how Texas embodied “big thinking” and imagination.   She talked about the underground project that she, her sister and her mother embarked upon several years ago to make white wines when her father was set on only making cabernet.   They made only 50 cases with the understanding that the family would drink it all themselves.  They didn’t mention their project to Julio for eight months and even painted the barrels red.  Finally, he figured out the game and told them, “you girls are cheating on me – you can each play with one white wine.”  Having tried the three wines, I have to tell you how glad that I am that they did.

We began the reception with the 2010 Palmaz Riesling “Louise” from Napa Valley.  It was tropical, off dry, fruity but not too sweet.  Fabulous, but very hard to get.

Our first course was creamed mussels with roasted fennel and paprika seared octopus paired with the 10 Palmaz Chardonnay “Amalia.”  It was a match made in heaven.

Our second course was chapa style vegetables and morcilla with a goat cheese vinaigrette paired with 07 Cedar Knoll Vineyard Co. Cabernet Sauvignon which had nice citrus, tropical fruits and minerality.  It was a very well balanced wine that worked well with the course.  While the wine could age for years, it was very smooth.  I tasted big berry, mocha and it was well structured.

The entree course was grilled Tenderloin with chimichurri, wild mushrooms and peas.  I tasted blackberry, spice and leather in the 07 Palmaz Cabernet .  It was fabulous.

Our dessert course was a dessert wine paired with a family recipe from Amalia.  Her Dulce de Batana and Port Salute Tart combined with the 10 Palmaz Muscat Canelli “Florencia.”  A perfect close to a perfect dinner – simple, fresh and light.

Our dinner table had a very lively conversation about when toasting, you must look each person in the eye individually.  I’m not sure if the ten years of bad luck will happen, but I’m not willing to take a chance … here’s looking at you.

Side note: The Old Hickory Steakhouse is up for best steakhouse.  Do me a favor and click here to vote.

Israel Wine Shines Bright in Dallas: First Winemakers Come Full Circle

When I received an invitation from Alfonso Cevola of Glazer’s Distributors, a person whose palate I respect, to attend a celebration to kick-off Israel Wine Week in Dallas, I was curious.  As you know, I love finding off the beaten path wines that I can introduce to you.  And wow — while these wines are kosher, I can tell you as a card-carrying Catholic that they stand up in taste, complexity and value to almost any wine out there. 

Israel has been producing wine for over 5,000 years and started nearly 2,000 years prior to the Greeks and Romans in Europe.  In 1882, Baron Edmond de Rothschild, owner of Chateau Lafite, founded Carmel Winery.  It took about 100 years for the wine folks in California to conclude that the Golan Heights had the right climate — volcanic soil, altitudes, temperature and water — to make some quality wines.  It took Royal Wine Corporation 50 years later to decide to import these wines to the U.S.  It took about another 100 years for Sheldon Stein to decide that Glazer’s needed to bring these wines to Dallas and beyond.  I’d personally like to thank them all.

The most widely grown varietals in Israel include cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, merlot and sauvignon blanc with up-and-comers cabernet franc, riesling and syrah.  The five wine regions include Gali (Gaililee including the Golan Heights), Shomrom, Samson, the Judean Hills and Negeve appellations.  Currently there are more than 250 large-scale, co-operative and boutique wineries that produce 30 million bottles annually.

The thing that I’d like to urge you to do is to not think about these wines as kosher wines (actually not all Israeli wine is kosher), but award-winning wines made with great care and by great people.   Lior Lacser, Carmel’s winemaker, discussed the need to bring these wines forward to consumers who drink fine wine vs. a kosher sell.  His focused is elegant, balanced wines that showcase Old World style with New World techniques.  We tasted 12 wines — a mix of white, red and dessert — in two different categories and at price points from $15 to $80.

We started with several white wines including:

• Carmel Ridge White 09 — fruity, crisp, lots of citrus and pear with good minerality.  A very nice everyday food, friendly wine ($17.99).
• Carmel Private Collection Chardonnay 09 — tropical notes with a little too much bite in the finish for me, but as you know, I’m not a huge chardonnay drinker ($21.99)
• Carmel Kayoumi Vineyard Riesling 10 — orange blossom, off dry with honeysuckle, citrus and petroleum.  This was an awesome representation of riesling and the winemakers favorite wine today ($26.99)
• Sha’al Gewurztraminer Late Harvest 07 — apricot, honeysuckle, lychee and a fabulous dessert wine ($21.99)

Our red line up included the following:

• Carmel Private Collection Cabernet Sauvignon — spice, cedar and eucalyptus ($22.99)
• Carmel Carignan 07 — this was a labor of love for the winemaker and a grape that used to be part of Israel’s history.  Big cherry, spice and mocha.  Awesome and full of character ($28.99).  Also loved that these labels are “whimsical” with a variety of fauna from biblical Israel that are hand-drawn
• Carmel Petite Syrah 07 — smoke, blueberry, floral with rich, juicy notes.  These grapes originally were relegated to grape juice until Gava saw the potential and this is NOT your average Welch’s ($29.99)
• Binyamina The Cave 07 — vanilla, toasted oak, earth, cardamom, sage, black berries and menthol.  Lots of depth and layers to this one ($22.99)
• Yatir Red Blend 06 — Herby, fruitier, definitely not my favorite of the tasting, but an interesting wine ($42.99)
• Carmel Mediterranean 07 — big black cherry, leather, earthiness abound; a great wine ($60.99). 
• Carmel Limited Edition 07 — a flagship high end wine that is made only when the conditions are optimal.  I tasted petroleum, tobacco, chocolate, mocha and eucalyptus.  An elegant wine with an elegant price at (86.99), but I’d put this up against almost any high-end Napa wine at the same price point (or even above).

We learned about a new association of 20 Israeli wineries founded a month ago, solely dedicated to taking these wines to a new level in America.  From what I understand, there are many fabulous wineries missing not in the Royal portfolio, but it’s a good launching pad.  You should be able to find these at Sigel’s, Centennial, Mr. G’s, Central Market and Corner Wines.  After almost 200 years of winemaking, I can assure you that they are quite good at it.  I plan to buy and cellar some — I’ll keep you posted on the evolution.  I challenge you to do the same.

Decent Glass of Wine At A Chain Series: Russo’s Coal Fired Italian

As a part of my ongoing and often sporadic “Can You Get a Decent Glass of Wine from a Chain Restaurant” series, I was invited to Russo’s Coal Fired Italian Kitchen, a chain of more than 25 Italian restaurants.  I’d never been to Russo’s before and so I made the ride to Richardson, TX, with my friend, David, who graciously agreed to be a part of the taste experience.

This series started after I told my husband that I did not want to meet him for drinks after work at Mi Cocina due their very pedestrian wine list.  While I have been pleasantly surprised  with the results of this series (I’ve had two good experiences at Cafe Express and The Olive Garden),  I wasn’t sure what to expect from a pizza and pasta chain.  Again, I found that I need to check my pre-conceived notions at the door.  

We were warmly greeted by Chris Demers, director of operations for Russo’s, who began talking passionately about the wine program.  Russo’s offers twelve wines by the glass — one prosecco, five whites and six reds — and ten of those rotate monthly.  All of these wines retail for $7 for a 5 oz. pour.  When we visited the restaurant, there were some other specials including Ferrari Carano for $6 and Masi for $9.  Demers has a background of helping bring The Wine Loft, a national wine bar concept, to fruition so when he came to work at Russo’s he immediately overhauled the wine program.

He told us that, overall, Richardson (Dallas) wine drinkers were adventurous and while he needed to have some traditional Italian Chianti’s and Pinot Grigio’s on the menu, people were also willing to try Argentian Malbec and Chilean Sauvignon Blanc.  After checking his website, we realized the list Demers has is different from the Russo’s wine list.  That is by design.  Half of these wines aren’t available via retail as he’s trying to encourage a positive adventure in wine for his diners.  It is paying off — since he overhauled the wine program, sales are up over 50 percent.  There has only been one exception — Mark West Pinot Noir.  He tried to replace this crowd favorite and quickly realized it was a sacred cow.

Here’s the line-up that we had the night of our tasting:

White:

• Cavit – Lunetta Prosecco 09.  I tasted peach and pear with a mineral ending.  A very nice drinkable sparkling to start your meal.
• Castegio – Pinot Grigio 10.  This is a crisp and tart pinot grigio.  This grape isn’t my usual first choice in wine, but it was a good representation.
• De Martino – Sauvignon Blanc 10 (Chile).  This was my favorite white.  Lots of citrus and pineapple, but with the minerality that I like.  If I tasted this blindly, I would have said this was a sauvignon blanc from New Zealand.  Note this one is very hard to find in Dallas.
• Alias – Chardonnay 09 (California).  Loved the story behind this project by eight un-named wine makers who wanted to make a good wine.  This was made in Old World style with lemon, tropical fruits and honey, but without being a butter bomb.  This was David’s favorite white and a very nice chardonnay.
• Chateau Ste. Michelle – Riesling 10 (Washington State).  Always a critics’ favorite — especially at this price range — this had lots of stone fruit flavor and was a great value riesling.

Red:

• Mark West – Pinot Noir 09 (California).  The people have spoken.  No comment.
• Ruffino – Sangiovese 10 (Chianti).  You have to have a by the glass chianti, but there are much better options on the list.
• Ca’Momi – Merlot 09 (Napa).  This is one of them.  A big jammy, food-friendly wine with notes of plum, cherry and menthol.  A really nice merlot and David’s favorite red.
• Altos – Malbec Classico 10 (Mendoza).  A very nice representation of a Malbec with vanilla, mocha and chocolate. 
• Blackburn – Cabernet Sauvignon 08 (Paso Robles).  Run, do not walk and see if you can find this wine in Dallas (if I don’t buy it all first).  This drank like a $30 cab and was off the charts good.  Big notes of plum, cherry, earth and menthol.  

We also got to sample a few of the menu items, prosciutto with buffalo mozzarella, which I didn’t try because I’m allergic to pork, and the spinach and artichoke dip, which was off the charts good.  My advice for you is to come from 3-6 for Happy Hour or on Wednesday’s when wines are $5.  Order the dip and the Blackburn and savor the fact that not only can you get a good glass of wine from a chain, but you have found a cabernet that is a fantastic price to taste ratio.

Salud.

Matching Wine with Beef Tongue: My Chefs Under Fire Culinary Experience

The Winning Dish - Courtesy of Steven Doyle, Crave DFW

I attended the third annual 2011 Dallas/Fort Worth Chefs Under Fire Regional Culinary Competition last month at the Milestone Culinary Arts Center.  The contest, which is sponsored by the Keep Collection, LLC, was won by Kevin Martinez of Tokyo Cafe with a dish of seared tilefish, fresh peach and tomato salsa on a corn and okra-yuzu succotash topped with crispy shallots.  It looked great.  However, only the chef judges – Chef Tim Byres of SMOKE, Katie Natale of Four Seasons Resort and Club and Sharon Van Meter of Milestone Culinary Arts Center got to try the dishes.

The Wine Matching Challenge of a Lifetime

The rest of us had an array of appetizers to taste and a wine and food demo from Commissary Chef John Tesar, who prepared beef tongue, and Sommelier Scott Barber who had to match the dish with wines.  The question of the day is what wine do you serve with beef tongue?  Barber recommended two whites and a red.

Scott Barber, the Man with A Plan — Courtesy of Steven Doyle, Crave DFW

The Line Up

• 09 Château de Sancerre “Passe Avant le Meilleur” Sancerre, Loire Valley.  The minerality, pepper and smoky taste came out when paired with the beef tongue. A very crisp and subtle wine that stood up to the green notes in the salsa verde sauce.
• 2007 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling Spätlese.  This wine paired surprisingly well with the spices used on the tongue and with the floral, honey and tropical notes.
• 09 Château St. Jean de la Gineste Vieilles Vignes Corbières.  The lone red paired with the black fruit and Asian spices used in preparing the dish.  It was a mix of fruit and earthiness.

Gene and Julie Gates of 103.7 Lite FM cracked me up as guest emcees of the event.   

Chef Martinez will now advance to compete at the Chefs Under Fire final competition to be held on October 16 in Austin, TX.  There, he will compete against Chef Daniel Valenzuela, a student at Escoffier School of Culinary Arts who won the Austin/San Antonio challenge, as well as the Houston Regional Winner for a one week stay in Los Cabos.

Austrian Wines: World Class Whites and Unique Grapes

I meet lots of great people through this blog and it always amazes me how small the wine community in Dallas truly is. One person, who I actually have gotten to know on both a personal and professional level, is Jeff Irish, Wine & Spirits Broker for Magnolia Wine Co.  In the spirit of full disclosure, I first met Jeff long before my blogging days as he is the brother of a dear friend of mine.  He’s always impressed me with his wine knowledge, quest to bring smaller wineries and wines off the beaten path to Dallas and his willingness to teach others about wine.

We talked about his passion for Austrian wine and my lack of knowledge about this region.  Jeff generously agreed to come to our couple’s wine tasting group and bring some great wines representative of Austria.  But, we had a few surprises in store for him as well ….

Jeff started with an overview about Austrian wine.  I was surprised to hear that this region makes less than one percent of the world’s wine production.  In fact, there is more wine made in the Loire Valley than all of Austria.  These wines have been made for over 900 years using many of the same methods.  The industry was turned on its head in 1985, when a few producers added diethylene glycol, an antifreeze agent, to enhance body and sweetness and justify higher prices.  This resulted in Parliament enacting very strict wine regulations that modernized many of the age-old wine making processes.  

Photo Courtesy of Jeff Irish

We started with three Grüner Veltliners, one from Franz Etz, one from Stift Göttweig and one from Ludwig Neumayer.  Grüner is an easy drinking wine (especially in hot Texas summers) and Jeff said Texas really seems to be warming up to these wines.

• Franz Etz 09 Grüner Veltliner – a crisp white with notes of floral, pair and green apple.  Nice, easy to find and affordable.  Comes in a full liter bottle that is pretty cool.
• Stift Göttweig 08 Grüner Veltliner – lots of Asian pear and literally blessed by Benedictine monks from the Stift Göttweig monastery.
• Ludwig Neumayer 08 Grüner Veltliner – I tasted lemon and herbal notes.  This was the most elegant of the three tasted.

Photo Courtesy of Jeff Irish

We then moved to Rieslings.  We started with a 2008 Josef Hogl Riesling Federspiel Bruck.  I tasted green apple, honey, caramel, tropical fruit and peach with lots of minerality.  Some sweetness, but the wine ended with a dry finish.  Our host couple, Marcus and Shannon, who have to have one of the most interesting and obscure collections of vintage wine from Europe that I’ve ever seen, brought out a fascinating wine for comparison – 1993 Freie Weingärtner Wachau Riesling.  This one was very different than the first – much more mineral in nature with hints of green apples and citrus, but sadly was probably past its prime.

Photo Courtesy of Jeff Irish

We returned back to try Moric 08 Blaufrankisch, our first red wine.  I tasted vanilla, raspberries, dark fruit, sandalwood, pepper and lots of earth.  Of the reds tasted, this was my least favorite.  Our next one was the 08 Umathum Zweigelt.  I tasted blueberry, smoke, spice and lots of bright fruit. 

We ended the official part of the tasting with the Feiler-Artinger 06 “Pinot Cuvee” Ruster-Ausbruch, a dessert wine, with big notes of caramel and marizipan.  Sublime with an almond cookie.

At that point, Marcus decided to bring out some Austrian treasures from his collection.  We tasted several wines to get a comparison of what happens when Austrian wines age. 

Our first wine was a 2000 Weingut Willi Bründlmayer Grüner Veltliner Auslese Ried Loiser Berg.  I liked this wine and tasted lots of caramel, maple syrup, cassis with touches of citrus.  We then tasted the same wine from 1983.  It was remarkable – the caramel notes were there, but not as prominent and this was a wine that benefitted from its age in the bottle.  Very nice!

We then sampled one last wine – similar in nature, but from France.  The 85 Domaine Huet Vouvray Clos du Bourg Moelleux showed citrus, figs and big spicy notes.  A perfect ending to a fabulous night of touring European wines from a backyard in Dallas.

Photo Courtesy of Jeff Irish