Dallas Wine Chick

A Night of Tapas and Spanish Wine

I recently attended the Lakewood Country Club wine dinner, which was Spanish themed and for the first time in a long time did not feature a particular wine maker.  It was styled as a “Spanish wine and tapas” event and focused on particular geographies – Monstant, Priorat, Rioja, Valencia, Ribera del Duero and finished with an aged sherry.

William Koval, the executive, and incredibly talented, chef who put the French Room on the map continued to wow patrons with six courses of food showcasing Spain at its finest.  And, Tony Zaranti, the club house manager who has brought Lakewood’s wine list to award-winning status, did not disappoint.

The reception began with a Gran Sarao Brut Rose Cava, which was 65 percent granacha and 35 percent mouvedre.  Basic, simple, crisp and non-fussy, it went well with Spanish themed tapas that you might be served at any bar in Spain.  In the spirit of full disclosure, during a past trip to Spain, I had so many of those that my poor husband had to honestly answer the “do I look fat in these jeans question.”  I guess after being married for almost 18 years, honesty is the best policy.

The first course served was Gambas al Ajillo with Jamon Pata Negra (garlic shrimp with Iberico ham).  Mine was slightly altered due to my pork allergy, but the 2010 Acustic Blanc from Monstant was full of passion fruit with a minerality that went perfectly with the spiciness of the shrimp.  This was a really nice, crisp, “off the beaten path” wine that is now on my buy list. 

The second course was a Cucido de Cordero (lamb shank with white bean stew) served with a 09 Galena “Formiga de Galena” Priorat.  Very rich and earthy with notes of berry, chocolate and spiciness. 

The third course was Abondigas (meatballs of Spanish pork, veal and beef – or just veal and beef for me) served with the 07 Marques de Vargars Rioja.  I find this to be a fine utility player wine, but it’s never knocked my socks off.  It was a nice match with some of the best meatballs I have ever eaten.

The fourth course was a Mejillones con Hinojo (mussels and fennel) with a 08 Bodegas Hispano Suizas Pinot Noir from Valencia.  It was deep, intense, floral, earthy and fabulous.  Who knew that Spain made such a nice Pinot Noir?

The fifth course was a mix of Spanish cheeses — Iberica Curado from La Mancha, Montenebro from Avila and Idiazabel from Navarra paired with the 07 Comde de San Cristobal, Ribera del Duero.  This was my favorite wine of the night.  Very complex and deep with big notes of fruit, earth and mocha.  Just fabulous stuff.

The dessert course was vanilla bean ice cream paired with an 85 Albala “Don PX” Gran Reserva sherry that highlighted everything good about older sherry.  I described it as “raisin in a glass,” but I avoided the vanilla ice cream and let the sherry stand on its own.

Wine-ing Through Europe

Many of you know that I recently took a marketing role at an international company based in Stockholm which requires that I spend at least once a month on the road.  While this sounds fabulous and glamorous, it usually ends up being planes, taxis, conference rooms, airports, little sleep and interesting dinners – some good, some really bad.

It’s rare that I get to take in the local sites – let alone the local wine bars, but this trip proved to be an exception.  It also turned into quite the adventure – from bomb threats at the airport in Amsterdam to a sad Cupid trying to buck tradition in Valentine’s Day apathetic Stockholm.

After finding out that British Airways had Tattinger by the glass, I happily accepted a few glasses on my DFW to London leg of the trip.  However, while the flight attendant on the London to Amsterdam flight tried very hard to convince me to have champagne, it was only 8:30 a.m., and even I have my standards.  I was very thankful that he convinced me to take the split of Pommery to drink at a later time.

We landed in cold and snow in Amsterdam and were greeted by our tour guide and colleague, Rose, who had set up a wine and cheese tasting of a well-known, Holland-based cheese maker, Reypenear.  We had two very drinkable French wines – a La Croisade Viognier and a Syrah that were nicely priced around $12 a bottle and port that rocked with the cheese.

After touring the heart-breaking Anne Frank museum, we went to a wine bar named Wine & Bubbles that had fabulous flights.  Our group sampled bubbles, French and Italian flights and everyone was very happy.  There was a great line-up of very fun wines and a cool atmosphere.  That’s where the culture ended and a very interesting night out begin.  Let’s just say that seeing the various sites of Amsterdam is very different by night than by day.

After the meetings, I headed to the Amsterdam Airport just a few hours after the bomb threat happened.  Security, chaos, lines that were more than two hours long and lots of very angry people that had no chance of making their flights.  Thankfully, the two million miles that I have on American/British Airways served me well and I found a frequent flyer line that only took 45 minutes.  And then I discovered the wheel of wine in the lounge. 

Fast forward to the Stockholm portion of the trip that happened to take place over Valentine’s Day.  Stockholm is not as “Hallmarked” as we are in the U.S. and I saw no flower deliveries of general giddiness at the office during the day.  However, as I ate dinner in the hotel, I did see a little guy with a bouquet of roses waiting and waiting and waiting for his date.  Sadly, she never showed.  I hope she met him elsewhere.

My Valentine’s night included lots of work emails and a very hearty battle with the aforementioned split of champagne that refused to open.  However, there is nothing that stands between me and champagne and I’m happy to say that I triumphed.

My trip ended with a child seated in business class who cried for nine hours straight.  This time, glasses of Tattinger, Bose headsets and a string of movies kept me sane.

The Power of Stemware, Openers and Blind Pinot Tasting

What was evolved into a group with the “tongue in cheek” name, The Dallas Wine Mafia,  recently met this month for round two of #BBWT.  The theme was Pinot Noir, which was less enthusiastically embraced by one of our members and we set out to try to prove him wrong.  What we didn’t know is that the theme turned more into the art of opening a bottle combined with the power of drinking wine out of the right glasses. 

We gathered at Kozy’s, which is one of my favorite restaurants with no corkage charge.  They could not have been more hospitable and the organic menu of fish, game and chicken was a nice match with the wine.   For some reason though, that night the pop music was turned up and hearing the notes of “Party Rock” made me laugh.

I always try to bring an “off the beaten path” wine and today it was my friend Lindsay Woodward’s.  Lindsay is the owner of Retour, a newish winery that makes one wine, pinot noir, and blows it out of the water.  Lindsay’s creation was going to be my secret weapon.

But before I jump into the wines we tasted, I must make mention of the art of opening my bottle.  I was the last to arrive and the other wines were open.  One of the group had this super space age looking automatic wine opener that immediately ripped the cork in the Retour to shreds.  The chaos that ensued between several members of the group and the waiter to open the wine was comical.  Between a coffee filter, a knife and an old fashioned wine opener, we avoided floating cork and the day was saved.

The wines we tried included the following:

• Four Graces Pinot Noir 09 (Oregon) – lots of terrior and black cherry.  I think I would have enjoyed this more if we gave it more time to open. ($26)
• Acrobat Pinot Noir 10 (Oregon) – cherry and a vegetal flavor to it.  I enjoyed this one. ($20)
• Kings Estate Winsor 08 (Sonoma) – cherry cola taste to it and interesting texture ($32)
• Bearboat Pinot Noir 07 (Russian River) – originally chosen because the label was annoying, this had some good balance and surprised us as being a good wine ($24)
• Decoy Pinot Noir 10 (Napa) – very full in body, bold, black cherry, spice ($28).  This was one of my favorite wines of the night.
• Chandon Pinot Meunier  09 (Sonoma) – the zinger of the night. Obviously a different grape than the Pinot Noir we tasted and we all knew “one of these things were not like the other.” ($32)
• Nuitts St Georges Premiere Cru Burgundy 08 (Domaine Henri Gouges Close, France) – this was caramel in a glass.  Over the dinner, it opened up very nicely and teased it what it would be with a little more decanting time.
• Retour Pinot Noir 06 – Big notes of cherry but with an elegant bouquet that had a lavender note to it ($55).  Voted by the majority as the favorite of the night.

I also happened to bring a six pack set of Spiegelau wine glasses, which showed how much glassware can make a difference in showcasing the nuances of a good wine.  I loved watching the reactions of some of the group discover this for the first time. 

Evening Land Vineyards: The Romance Continues

Last July, I became acquainted with Evening Land Vineyards through an event with Pioneer Wine Company.  So when I got the invitation from Natalie Vaclavik, the company’s Southeast Regional Sales Director of Evening Land, to attend a dinner at Bailey’s, I jumped at the chance.  When I got there, I found out that I was the first media outlet in Dallas to cover the wine.  Based on what I tasted, I’d make sure you try a bottle or two before the word gets out.

Originally, Larry Stone, master sommelier, president of Evening Land and one of only two Americans to have won the competition for International Best Sommelier in French Wines and Spirits from Food and Wines from France, was supposed to attend. However, as it often does, life got in the way. But, Natalie made up for his absence with her knowledge, passion and enthusiasm for the wines. And when you add the insight from Bailey’s Sommelier, Jennifer Jaco, you have created a wine lover’s dream. FYI – Jennifer has built one of the best wine lists in town at Bailey’s with over 715 labels and it’s on par with the Fairmont Hotel’s, which was the best I have found in terms of fun/unique and scope of wines.

The winery owns land in Occidental Vineyard in Sonoma and Santa Rita Hills Estate in California, Eola-Amity and Seven Springs in Oregon as well vineyards in Burgundy in collaboration with Dominique Lafon of Domaine des Comtest Lafon. Evening Land is committed to selling the best pinot noir and chardonnay possible. The wines have a color-coded, tiered label system of blue, silver, gold and white, which reflects pricing. Blue is the most affordable and starts at about $25 leading up to the white label, which runs about $120 a bottle. Isabel Meunier is the wine maker in Oregon; Christophe Vial is the winemaker in Beaune, France, and Sashi Moorman in California. Lafon continues to consult in France.

Executive Chef Grant Morgan created a number of dishes matched with the different wine regions from France to Oregon to California. We were served a pinot noir and chardonnay with each course.

Our first course was Foie Gras, Black Pepper Lavash and Apricot Jam served with the 10 Evening Land Vineyards Etoile Pouilly Fuisse ($28.99), France, which had notes of lemon, minerality, a little butterscotch and a nice mouth texture. It was fabulous with the food and the Old World style of white that I enjoy. The next wine served was the 10 Evening Land Blue Label Bourgogne Rouge ($25.99), France, which earthy with notes of black cherry.

The second course was served with my favorite white wine of the night, which is almost impossible to procure since only 100 cases are made. The 09 Evening Lane Vineyards Summum Chardonnay, Seven Springs Eola-Amity Hills from Oregon ($125.99) was a treat. Citrus, apple, tropical and minerality. Very old world style and my favorite chardonnay. When served with the cherry stuffed Oregon quail breast with creamy polenta and sweet onions, it was a match made in heaven. The 09 Evening Land Vineyards Seven Springs Estate Pinot Noir, Eola-Amity Hills from Oregon ($39.99) was the epitome of Oregon in a glass — earthy, Old World, black cherry. I really liked this wine.

We then moved to California with roasted duck breast, almond toast, braised California rhubarb and watercress. The almond toast was almost like dessert, and when I asked Grant about it, he told me I didn’t want to know how fattening it was because it was cooked in duck fat. Sigh. Oh, but it was worth it. The wines served were the 10 Evening Lands Blue Label Chardonnay, which was full bodied with some apple, flint and citrus. The 09 Evening Land Vineyards Santa Rita Hills Estate Pinot Noir, had ripe blackberry and dark fruit with a big finish.

We finished with a fabulous tray of desserts, that I couldn’t stop eating, and joined Natalie and Jennifer for a fun chat about wine and a rich 20-year-old glass of Ramos Pinto 20 Years Old Quinta do Bom Retiro Tawny Port from Portugal.

Love Affairs, Piropos and Free Wine

In honor of Valentine’s Day and putting poetry into action, I have teamed up with Tapeña wines.  It’s time to be creative and talk about your love affair – this time with the grape. 

The most creative Piropo will win a four-pack of wines, a Spanish-themed cookbook and some other fun material.  What is a Piropo you may ask?  Translated literally it is a “flirtatious or poetic compliment to a woman.”  Things like, “If beauty were a sin, you’d never be forgiven” or “So many curves, and me without brakes” (shudder).  But, that’s been so done.  I want to see how clever and unique you can voice your appreciation for wine.

Tapeña—the wine with the little fork on the label—is a blend of tradition, camaraderie and gathering close friends.  I had the chance to partner with them a few years ago on an event so if you want to know more about the  wine.

For more info about Tapeña, check out their website, Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/tapenawines or Twitter @tapenawine.  They also have a reward program, for those of you who become fans, where you can get more free stuff.

 The fine print – you must be 21 years or older to enter, and that by entering you verify you are over 21.  The contest will close on January 31 and you can enter here.  Looking forward to seeing your poetry in motion.

Brown Bagging: A Blind Tasting Experience

Before the holidays, a group of Dallas-based wine folks gathered together for our first brown bag tasting event.  We tried ten wines in an informal format at Campania Pizza in Uptown, who was generous enough to waive the corkage fee. 

The parameters were wide open – a red wine in the neighborhood of $20-25 a bottle.  I was really intrigued to see what the group would bring as it was a varied group of wine lovers – some formally trained and some self taught – all interested in continuing their journey with wine. 

Here was the line-up and my reactions:

• Cooper L’inizio – 2008 (Washington).  After hosting Neal Cooper on his first Dallas visit last year and being impressed with Washington State wine at the Wine Bloggers Conference 2010, I thought I’d bring something that the rest of the tasters couldn’t get in Texas.  Note that I did break the rules a bit and bring a bottle that is now estimated to sell around $40 in very limited quantities.  Definitely in my top three wines.
• Inwood Estates 2008 Cornelius (Texas) I admit it – I continue to struggle with the price point and payoff of this wine.  @jftxwine brought it as the zinger of the night and I tasted concrete and something sweet that didn’t work for me especially at $40.
• Petalos Bierzo 09 (Spain).  I tasted blueberry, spice and a hint of floral, which may have been lavender.
• La Vierge,” Cahors 07 (France), smoky, dark cherry, flinty, meaty and earthy.  This wine is referred to as the “French Malbec”
• Mollydooker The Boxer (Australia) – After having the ability to spend some time with Sparky and Mum late last year, talking about these guys is like talking about family.  I tasted big berry, licorice, oak and cedar.
• Bodini Malbec – 2010 (Argentina).  Berry, meaty, licorice abound in this juicy Malbec.
• Toasted Head Cabernet Sauvignon 09 (California).  Cherry, cassis, coffee and some spice.
• Haven’s Meritage 09 Rutherford (California).  Blueberries, vanilla, spice and a big juicy red.  Definitely in my top three wines.
• Domaine Alain Graillot Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 09 (France).  Raspberry, cardamom, smoky with a little pepper.  On my top three list.
• Pagos del Moncejo Garnacha 08 (Spain).  Cedar, spice, vanilla and cherry.

We had a great time, ate some really good pizza and enjoyed diverse wines from around the world.  Our next brown bag tasting is in early February and we’ll taste Pinot Noirs.  I just happen to have another surprise in store.

The Blind Wine Chick Has Line of Sight to A Great Chardonnay

When I got an email entitled The “Blind Wine Chick,” I was intrigued.  I assumed that it had something to do with testing my own palate in a blind tasting.  I quickly came to realize that the email was about Alexandra Elman, an American oenophile and successful wine entrepreneur, who lost her sight due to complications from diabetes at the age of 27.

Courtesy of Doug Holt Photography

Elman was born to an oenophile father and a Brazilian chef mother.  She spent her youth in Brazil, France and New York exposed to food and wine.  These experiences honed her passion for wine and she worked for Perrier-Jouet Champagne in France and later Sherry Lehman.  Working for these firms exposed her to some of the lesser-known wines in the world, which seemed more honest to her than many of the larger labels.

Elman’s blindness never slowed her down.  She continues to search the world for the best wines to bring to the U.S.; however, now she has her seeing-eye dog, Hanley, as her companion.  In 2009, she created her own label, Alex Elman Wines, which was released in November 2010.  The focus – sustainability and representation of the wine’s terrior. 

Our group tried four varietals from Argentina—a Chardonnay, a Torrontés, a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Malbec.  The two group favorites were the Chardonnay – yes, stop the presses!  It was a crisp white with notes of green apple, toast and vanilla.  In other words, a Chardonnay that appeals to those who do not usually like Chardonnay.  The other was the Cabernet Sauvignon with its big berry, licorice and notes of cedar.  All bottles retail for under $15.

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.

Freixenet and Ferrer Sparkling for the Holidays

I have been way too quiet lately and I broke my cardinal rule last week to blog at least once a week. Therefore, I owe you an apology, but I hope you understand. Last week I left my longest job to date where I had worked for six and a half years at one of the largest global public relations firms. I had this amazing opportunity – to go back to the client side and become the chief marketing officer of an enterprise software firm based in Sweden. No, I’m not moving, but it is going to be a definite career challenge. And, so clearly I’m excited. But distraction set in and while I drank a lot of celebratory wine, I just wanted to be a normal consumer for a change.

When I was invited to a TasteLive event featuring Freixenet and Gloria Ferrer sparkling wines, my need to celebrate took over. We were supposed to pair these with cheese, but I was in diet mode so I decided to use Mediterranean food, which paired ridiculously well.

Our group of four started with the Freixenet Cordon Negro Cava, which we universally agreed was a good budget, easy drinking sparkler. It was nice on its own with apple, pear and citrus flavors, but it was almost begging for fresh squeezed orange juice.

The Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Brut tasted of brown toast, citrus, green apple and had a nice minerality to it. It was described by one of my group as the one that she would drink for the evening because it was the most interesting and had some depth.

The Segura Viudas Brut Rose Cava, which is always a sparkling stand-by at my parties, was fruity with notes of raspberry and cherry. It paired perfectly with the hummus. I really like this wine and think it is a fabulous value for the price.

In a month where celebrations abound, pick up some sparkling that will be easy on your palate and wallet.

Arnaldo-Caprai Grecante Grechetto, Cloudy Bay and Terrazas de los Andes Reserva Malbec Wine Reviews

I gathered a group of good friends together right before the Thanksgiving holiday with the purpose of sampling several wines — many off the beaten path of the California staples they normally enjoy.

The first that we tried was an Arnaldo-Caprai Grecante Grechetto.  Grecante Grechetto is a white wine made in Umbria, Italy, from the indigenous Grechetto grape.  It was a well balanced and fruity wine, but had enough acidity to be soft.  This was a new grape to me, and it will definitely be on my list of refreshing white wines that I will buy in the future.

The second wine was the 11 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc, known as one of New Zealand’s top Sauvignon Blanc classics.  I discovered this by chance on a wine list several years ago and it was one I would always order when I could.  This wine had a stronger grapefruit taste than I remembered, but it still had notes of stonefruit, grass, pine nut and lots of acidity.  Our gang of four was divided on this one, but I still am a fan.

The third wine was the 09 Terrazas de los Andes Reserva Malbec.  This was a very concentrated wine with notes of licorice.  I liked its smokiness and this was one that unified all four tasters.  And, since Malbec is one of the fastest growing grapes in the U.S., this is an affordable and tasty way to try one.