Discovering Bordeaux

Finally, another trade tasting! And this one was for Bordeaux so I was doubly excited. 'Discovering Bordeaux' was a wine tasting just for the trade and held at the Hyatt in Bethesda. There were 9 companies present to exhibit their Bordeaux offerings along with 3 seminars discussing various Bordeaux topics. I attended the 'Mastering Medoc' seminar. Medoc is a famous commune just north of the city of Bordeaux and includes the popular Pauillac and Margaux. While I did learn quite a bit about the soil, climate and vineyards that make Medoc great, I am quite far from being a 'master' :-).

OK so for those that aren't familiar with Bordeaux, it is a city in Southwest France divided by the Garonne River. The west side is the Left Bank and the east side is the Right Bank. Most Bordeaux wines are blends of several different grapes which allows Bordeaux to highlight the best of each varietal in order maintain a consistent high quality of wine from year to year. The reds are blends of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. The whites are blends of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. Now, on to the tasting!

As much as I would have loved to taste through every wine at every table, I was actually working this event so I tasted at the end...what was left. My favorite of the evening was the Chateau Paret Beausejour Cotes de Castillon from William Harrison Imports. The deep red showed of black fruit and had a chewy, plummy texture. Very smooth tannins with hints of minerality added complexity to the finish of this wine. I'm told that this is a great alternative (meaning less expensive I think) to Saint-Emilion. Since the comparison was made to Saint-Emilion, I've got to taste one. The Chateau Haut Piquat Lussac-Saint-Emilion fit the bill, and the palate. Aged in oak for 18 months, this wine had very earthy aromas followed by a bouquet of raspberries and cherries. And what a silky, elegant finish.

As the tasting came to a close, I figured I'd finish off with something sweet...a Sauternes. Sauternes is a Semillon-based dessert wine from Bordeaux. Due to a climate of misty mornings and sunny days, a fungus called noble rot will cling to the Semillon grapes. This fungus dries the pulp inside the grape resulting in a concentration of the sugars inside the grape which will then produce a very concentrated sweet juice once the grape in pressed. Sweet in taste, they typically have a honeyed, vanilla aroma. Can be served with as an appetizer, with dessert, or as dessert. The Chateau Sahuc Lestour from Country Vintner was an outstanding example of Sauternes. With its flavors of apricot, caramel and toasted nuts, I couldn't wait for dinner!

Flair for the Fabulous

Have you ever been to a bar and saw the bartender flip the shakers, toss the bottles behind his back, juggle with glasses? It is a pretty cool sight. To do something exciting and different, I went to Great Gatherings in Annapolis and watched Chris Cardone bartend 'with flair' as he flipped cocktail shakers and balanced bottles on the back of his hand...and then make us a cocktail!

He made 2 standard cocktails, The Manhattan, and a Mojito. Then as a twist on the Pisco Sour, Chris gave us the Passion Pisco Sour. We of course got to sample all of them and get his tips on how to make a great cocktail at home. He was also very knowledgeable about current cocktail books and which ones would be most helpful. I have the internet, so no books necessary for me ;-) But I did go out and buy pisco later that evening, that drink was my fave!

Wine Wednesday - Holiday Tasting Edition

So, I'm back in town, back in the swing of thing, back to tasting wine! For tonight's Wine Wednesday, I went to Bell Wine & Spirits in DC. It's time to start thinking about wine for the holidays so Bell had a Holiday Wine Tasting with over 30 wines available to pair with your Thanksgiving or other holiday meals. After so much time off, was I up for the challenge of tasting so many wines...well let's see.

When reading wine articles, posts, wine blogs, etc for Thanksgiving wine ideas, most offer up the Pinot Noir suggestion. So I expected quite a bit of that at this tasting because that is what people are used to buying, drinking, pairing, which is great for me because I'm quite fond of Pinot Noir. This tasting didn't disappoint with 14 different Pinots. Among my favorites were of course the Rene Bovier Fixin and Nicolas Rossignol Volnay 1er Chevret from Burgundy. My trip to Burgundy this summer has me still in love with everything Burgundy! Also loved the Redtree Pinot Noir from CA with its strawberry and red cherry flavors and the Forefront Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley for its smoky complexity and red fruit flavors.

Zinfandel is another popular choice and I think is a great match for the smoked Thanksgiving turkey. My favorite Zinfandel of the night was the 2007 Edmeades Zinfandel, it gave such a fruity raspberry bouquet with a touch of oak and hint of earthiness.

But my absolute hands down favorite wine of the evening was the 2006 Crivelli Ruche. OMG!! I've never smelled anything like this before. In the glass was lavender and herbs, and then the fruit explosion of black cherry, blueberry, clove, sweet spice....this list could go on and on. And funny that the gentleman pouring the wine said that this is a great alternative to Pinot Noir. Guess I have my red wine bases covered for the holidays. Maybe I should taste some whites later this week...

Down Home Cookin' (& Drinkin)

I love the Food Network! I love the Neelys on the Food Network! So imagine how excited I was to have tickets to see the Neelys live this past weekend. They were doing an hour long live segment at the Metropolitan Cooking & Entertaining Show in DC. I barely made it out the bed and to the convention center in time, but I got there! They were fantastic! I love to see husband and wife teams and the Neelys are no exception. Gina Neely got on one of the guests because she had a little too much 'lust' in her voice when she was asking her husband Pat a question. The audience erupted in laughter. But the most important thing, the food looked delicious!! And they actually cooked it, most of the other celebrity chefs had other people in the background making their dishes while they talked. Not the Neelys, they were hands in mixing and grilling themselves. On the menu, grilled stuffed pork chops, cheesy rice fritters, and apple crisp. The pork chops were stuffed with breading and bacon....anything with bacon is getting my vote everytime. I just need an indoor gril or grill pan because I think the flavor of the chops comes from the grill lines.

No food show would be complete without wines, so after the Neelys, I headed over to the Beer, Wine & Spirits section. I had quite a Saturday night, so I couldn't do the type of tasting that I usually do in these situations, but I did conquer 4 wines.

Bodegas Breton Criadanes Lorinon 2007 Navarette (Rioja) Spain
Made from 100% viura grapes, this wine was fermented in American oak and had slight contact with lees for aging purposes providing a creamy mouthfeel and hints of vanilla. Citrus flavors are also present on the finish along with a slight oakiness.

Monte Toro Rosado Garnacha 2006
I don't like to bash wines ever, I just mention that it wasn't perhaps to my liking. This one wasn't to my liking. I hadn't had a 'light' garnacha before and was excited to try this one because I'm a huge garnacha (grenache) fan. The strawberry aromas had my mouth watering but after the swirl and sip, it was all downhill. The flavors were very tart and astringent and fell quite flat. The color was also off, for a rosado. I'm expecting a light pinkish maybe salmon color...but this was quite dark for a 'rosado'. Perhaps a bit more skin contact would result in a stronger more garnacha-like flavor.

Ironberry Cabernet-Merlot-Shiraz 2008 Australia
Great nose, rich with berry aromas. Smooth and well rounded mouth with a soft oaky finish. Loved the toasted oak flavors on the finish. Would love to have a glass of this while I watch Grey's Anatomy.

Pirovano Montepulciano d'Abruzzo 2008 Italy
Young, full red fruit smells and flavors. Soft tannins, great acidity and moderately intense cherry and herb flavors make this sangiovese a very easy drinking wine.

Other Than Gruner

Just walking into the Washington Club I felt like I was walking into somewhere important. Then inside the event space, chairs were set at the tables with 10 wines in front of them with a placemat that said Institute of Masters of Wine - Austrian Wine Seminar. The Masters of Wine crest was on the placemat as well. I was definitely in the presence of great wine minds.

'Master of Wine' is both a qualification and a title, usually abbreviated to 'MW' following a member's name. Anybody who uses these letters has passed the rigorous Master of Wine exam that tests both practical and theoretical understanding of the wines of the world.The Institute of Masters of Wine was officially formed in 1955 but gave their 1st exam in 1953 to 22 students. Only 6 passed. The first woman didn't pass until 1970, and there are only 278 worldwide. Goes to show how serious this thing is! The presentation was given by Joel Butler, MW who was the 1st American to pass this rigorous exam. 2 Austrian wine makers also spoke to their specific wines and the Austrian-style of winemaking.

While I am familiar with the main grape variety of Austria, Gruner Veltliner, I have not had the opportunity to taste and compare/contrast many other Austrian varietals. This tasting provided that opportunity in that the seminar discussed everything but Gruner. The 5 whites we tasted were Weissburgunder, Rotgipfler, Zierfandler (2007), Zierfandler (2003), and Sauvignon Blanc. Good thing I still have my tasting sheet because there is now way I would have been able to spell the 1^st 3 correctly! Which is also helpful since rotgipfler is a new fav I'm adding to my list. The 2007 Stadlmann Rotgipfler Tagelsteiner from the Thermenregion is made from 40-50 yr old vines that are grown at high altitudes. The high altitudes lead to a riper grape because of longer contact with the sun during growing season. The increased contact delivers a much fuller, riper and more aromatic wine. Strong nose of flowers, baked apple, ripe pear with hints of red pepper and spice. And spices, herbs and the baked apple were on the palate as well. While fairly high in acidity, this wine exhibited a long smooth finish. This is a very exclusive and rare grape with only about 250 acres planted in all of Austria.

The 5 reds were St Laurent, Blaufrankisch (3 examples), and Gabarinza (a Zwiegelt blend). I've had blaufrankisch before in my WSET courses and am definitely a fan of it. So being able to taste the differences between 3 of them from 3 different regions in Austria was amazing. It's amazing the differences that you can taste in the wine based on climate, altitude, soil and wine making techniques between the different vineyards. The 2006 Iby "Chevalier", Mittelburgenland DAC Reserve was my fav of the 3. Its rich deep red fruit and berry flavors were in perfect harmony with the oak and smoke from the fermentation in oak barrels. Another wine of note from this tasting was the St Laurent which was said to be a descendant of Pinot Noir. The 2006 Rosi Schuster Sankt Laurent Reserve Zagersdorf, Burgenland was a very well-crafted and balanced wine. Shows a delicate structure of black cherry and sweet spice with a slightly chalky finish on the palate. With deep tannins and high acidity, I think this one could also age a little while in the bottle for an even richer and smoother taste.

The tasting after the seminar gave an even deeper look into the wines of Austria. Especially since this was a self-serve wine tasting. I mean just pick up a glass and the wines are sitting out on the table. Not that I make a habit of looking in spit buckets at wine tastings…but when I went to use them, I did notice that they weren't too full ;-). I tasted a few more st laurents and blaufrankischs and even tried a few Austrian Rieslings. Not too bad, but I think my palate is more accustomed to the German and Alsatian styles. Although I was impressed by the sparkling riesling.

A great event and a phenomenal learning experience. To attend a seminar offered by a MW is definitely a seminar worth attending. Joel Butler, MW was a wealth of knowledge and even assisted the tasting attendees with aroma and tasting notes. I definitely have a greater appreciation for Austrian grape varietals and their winemaking techniques. Another country to add to my cellar. But just a small note to the organizers of this event: please offer some type of water during the tastings, please.

Joie De Vivre

Once again I had the pleasure of attending the French Wine Society (FWS) annual conference. Last year I was a guest, or student shall I say...and this year I volunteered as a wine pourer. Two entirely different experiences but I can definitely say that I was still able to hear the presentations and participate in the wine tastings as a volunteer. There is always so much information being presented, so much to learn, and so many wines to taste!

This year's approach was a little different than last year, instead of covering a little bit about every region of France, this year the FWS highlighted a few regions and the speakers were able to cover them in greater detail. For example, the speaker on the Burgundy region didn't just talk about the wines themselves, he went into a detailed discussion of how the wines achieve their Grand or Premier Cru status and can we, the consumers, tell the difference. Of course there were a few people that thought they could tell the difference. But the majority were honest and thought that while the history and geology of how the status is gained is interesting and honorable, the system is old and doesn't really allow entry for new winemakers. The Bordeaux speaker also spoke to the same topic. Extraordinary presentation from him! Dr Benjamin Lewin, MW wrote the book, "What Price Bordeaux" and presented wines from 1st and 2nd growths and posed questions about why the pricing of Bordeauxs can be so outrageous and how pricing is determined. Some attendees said the presentation was controversial but very informative. I agree with the later.

A couple of the lesser known regions were also covered like Jura and Cahors. The wines were delish, and I even got to take a couple of the leftovers home (a perk of being a volunteer). Only problem is that wines from those regions aren't readily available is most wine shops in this area. The organizers of the conference even had trouble getting some of those wines in the country. If the French themselves can't get the wines...we have no chance, LOL!

Another new feature at the conference was the French Wine Scholar exam and regional exams for the Rhone and Provence. Each exam consisted of a blind tasting, a regional map, and theory. After seeing the study guides and then witnessing students taking the exam, this is serious business. My Burgundy certification exam was pretty much enough for me for the year!!

Love the Loire

I had the great honor of spending the afternoon at yet another trade tasting. This one was for Loire Valley Wines at the Westin Grand Hotel. The Loire Valley is geographically in the middle of France and gets its name because it sits along the Loire River. Loire Valley wines are several different grape varieties with the most well-known being Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Melon de Bourgogne and Cabernet Franc. But you wouldn't know that by looking at the bottles, most of them just specify the Loire Valley appellation.

Quick sidebar: Herein lies the problem most people have with French wine. If you aren't familiar with the appellations of this region, seeing Sancerre of the bottle will tell you nothing. Now through Google, or my blog :-), you would know that white wines from Sancerre are Sauvignon Blanc, reds are Pinot Noir. The French are getting a little better with that and some are starting to list the appellation and the grape on the labels. Merci!

Ok, back to the Loire Valley. It's the 3rd largest wine region in France and the largest white wine region. There are 65 appellations which display every style of wine from white to red, still to sparkling, dry to sweet. I think the most diverse styles and flavors of French wine come from the Loire Valley. This could be the case because vineyards in the Loire Valley grow alongside the river and covers about 630 miles which provides several varieties of soil and climates for the grapes to develop. The 65 appellations are divided in 5 regions: Nantes, Anjou, Saumur, Touraine, and Centre.

Now that we've gotten some basics and geography out of the way, we can get down to business...the wines! I must say that I haven't tasted my way through the Loire Valley because of the vast differences in the appellations and with some of the smaller ones, I didn't know exactly what was in my bottle. I love Vouvray and Savennieres which are 100% Chenin Blanc and I know that Sancerre, Pouilly Fume, and Touraine are Sauvignon Blanc. But with the reds, which I'm drinking more of now because of the chill in the air, I was a bit lost. So I did what I always say is the best way to learn about wine...I tasted them!

Appellation - Primary Varietal

Chinon - Cabernet Franc
earthy, dry, dark fruit flavors, may be aged in oak

Rose d'Anjou - Cabernet Franc/Grolleau
ripe red fruit, raspberry notes

Anjou Rouge - Cabernet Franc
earthy, fresh red fruits

Muscadet - Melon de Bourgogne
dry, crisp, apple, citrus, yeasty notes if aged on lees

Quarts de Chaume - Chenin Blanc (botrytised)
sweet, baked peaches, honey notes

With all the appellations of the Loire Valley, this tasting mainly just covered the 10 I listed above. Maybe this is because those are the ones that Americans already have a familiarity with and can appreciate their flavors. The French always say that their wines don't always do well with American palates, so maybe this tasting was a display of the French wines that Americans enjoy. Either way, I got a great map of the Loire Valley, an understanding of the primary varietals, and a tasting of some fantastic wines!

Wine By The Numbers

In a wine shop you always see little cards or advertisements for various wines stating, '83 pts by Robert Parker' or '96 pts by Wine Spectator'. But how does that really relate to your tastes and the type of wine that you buy? Some people use it as the gospel while I just use it as a guide to try a different producer for a grape or region that I already like. There are some people that come into wine shops with Wine Spectator in their hands, pointing to a specific wine. If the store didn't have that wine, that didn't want anything. There is no other area of our lives where consumers completely and totally take the advice of another. If we buy a car, or television, or diamond ring we would do a little research on our own, talk to some salespeople, try out a few different options or styles... Why not with wine?

At Great Gatherings in Annapolis, I had the pleasure of getting schooled on the whole rating system by The Wine Coach, Laurie Forster. She explained exactly how Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator taste the wines and assign values to certain aspects of the wine in order to come up with the final score out of 100. So instead of taking other peoples opinions, The Wine Coach let us taste 4 wines, assign them our own scores, and then compare them with the 'official' wine scores.

Wine #1 - Manciat Poncet Macon 2007
I started off with a bit of a bias on this one because I love white Burgundies. It scored fairly high for me on all categories except the aroma. There wasn't too much jumping out of the glass with this one, just hints of apple and lemon...typical from the Chardonnay grape of this region.

My final score - 96
Wine Spectator's score - 86

Wine #2 - Yalumba Valley Viognier 2007
Now this one has aroma! A perfumey, peach nose with hints of oak and spice. I doubt this will get much better with age so this one didn't score well in that category for me.

My final score - 93
Wine Spectator - 91
Robert Parker - 76 (Yikes!)

Wine #3 - Alamos Mendoza Seleccion Malbec 2008
Great aromas and flavors on the malbec. Loved the spicy vanilla on the long finish. There were pretty heavy tannins here and a bit of aging may smooth them out some. But I wouldn't hold this for longer than a few years.

My final score - 96
Robert Parker - 96

Wine #4 - Cline Ancient Vines Mourvedre 2007
Earthy aroma with dark fruits, but not a very strong aroma. The Mourvedre lost some points there. The flavors and finish were great with a 'juicy' mouthfeel of plums and blackberries with hints of sweet spice. This wine was made from old vines in California, which means they were at least 20 yrs old I believe. Trying to guess how well a wine will age is always a bit tricky and definitely gets better with practice, practice of tasting wines of different years. But I didn't think this one had that much age-ability, like you can drink it now or you could age it a bit.

My final score - 91
Wine Spectator - 88

Laurie Forster did a fantastic job with this seminar. And not only did she give us the opportunity get to taste some fine wines, we also got to rate the wines based on our own tastes. She really brought home the fact that only we can accurately know what we will and will not drink. The Malbec that Robert Parker scored as a 96 another person at the seminar scored it in the 70s. He gave the Viognier a 76 and Wine Spectator scored it at 91, even the wine 'experts' don't have the same opinions! So this just goes to show you that your tastebuds are your tastebuds and if you like the wine, it's a good wine.

Wine with a View

Standing in a loft on the 19th floor looking out across the Baltimore Harbor with a glass of 2007 Familia Zuccardi Bonarda Serie A. This was the scene at The Last Tango wine tasting with Wine Express Tastings hosted by Rita Blackwell. What a fantastic way to spend the evening. Guests walked around the Silo Point loft and were treated to a sparkling chardonnay, torrontes, and sauvignon blanc in the marble topped kitchen; then we adjourned to the upstairs loft area for the reds, bonarda, carmenere, malbec, and cabernet sauvignon.

With the sweeping views of the harbor and the delicious wines...the whole atmosphere of it all makes me wonder what I enjoyed more, the ambiance or the wines! But being a wine lover, and after tasting that Bonarda with those ripe cranberry and blackberry flavors with the slightest hint of oak and the 2007 Andeluna Malbec Select again with hints of oak, vanilla and dark cherries...the wines were definitely the highlight of my night.

Walk Around Wine Tasting

This past week Rick's Wine & Gourmet hosted a walk around wine tasting with Tri-Cities Distribution. With 6 different tables and over 20 wines to try, I definitely had to pace myself. I started at Table 6, it was closest to the door and empty at the time. They had 2 French wines, a red and a white, and 2 sherries. The French white (2007 Sacha Lichine La Poule Blanche) was a crisp slightly earthy blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Viognier. The blend of Chardonnay and Viognier really toned down the herbal, grassy quality of the Sauvignon Blanc so the wine had bright citrus notes with crisp acidity and a very floral aroma. The French red (2007 Sacha Lichine Le Coq Rouge) had a very complex red fruit flavor with a hint of earthiness from the French soils. This blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Grenache also exhibited hints of spice and pepper on the finish. Sherries are typically after dinner drinks and would definitely ruin my palate for the rest of the wines, I came back to these at the end. What table will I visit next?

The least amount of people were at Table 2, so that's where I went! Out of the 4 wines at this table, there were 2 with grapes I've never tasted before. So excited that I will be able to check off a few more grapes on my application for the Wine Century Club. Both wines were from Quinta do Alqueve in Portugal, the first, a 2008 that used the Fernao Pires grape and was aged in stainless steel. Citrus and tropical fruit aromas on the nose were followed by a zesty mineral character and pineapples. One of the best wines I had never heard of. Next up was there Tradicional a blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, Periquita and Trincadeiro. The flavors on this were somewhere between a Burgundy and a Bordeaux. Very rich aromas of plum and blackberries appear on first swirl and blend with a subtle oak and earthiness on the palate. Very heavy mouthfeel like a a cab or merlot but the rich, ripe fruit flavors of a pinot. The best thing about them outside of the taste of course, they're both under $12!

Table 1 had an interesting red blend, 2006 Yard Dog Red. The blend of Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot is I'm guessing Australia's answer to Bordeaux. Very dark, almost black in my glass, I didn't expect a lot at first glance. Intense aromas of black fruit and sweet spice. Ripe plum and blueberry flavors carry over to the palate and are balanced by a soft acidity and a good bit of alcohol. I would love to try this one with barbecue, and at $12 a bottle I will definitely try this again.

I'm now 10 wines into the tasting...luckily there were cheese and crackers or pate at every table. My tastebuds were definitely getting tired! But a true wine taster must forge ahead :-) My favorites from Table 3 were the 2007 Domaine Terlato & Chapoutier Shiraz/Viognier. I love this blend. The Viognier always lends a floral, perfumey aroma to the spicy, smoky Shiraz. This Australian style shines with flavors of blackberry and raspberry. Barbecue with sauce or a smoked brisket would be a great pairing for this blend. Still in Australia, I tasted the 2008 Two Hands Angel's Share Shiraz. On first sniff, this shows aromas of coffee and licorice. Not the greatest smells together, good thing the taste is different! The flavors of Coke, pepper, black cherry, and raspberry redeemed this wine from interesting aromas. I love the spicyness of this wine and it lingered on into the finish. You could actually store this wine and drink it in a few years.

The wine of note from Table 4 was the Zolo Torrontes, 2008. I may be a little biased though because I love Torrontes but the peach, honeysuckle and floral aromas get me every time. The tropical fruit flavors and slight acidity only make me want to buy the bottle. At under $10, this wine came home with me.

I'm officially pooped now and have also remembered that I still need to drive home after the tasting, on to the sweet wines! I know I will only have a sip or 2 of each of these.

NV Quinta de Honor Ruby Port - A great after dinner drink for sipping, this ruby colored port is medium bodied, smooth and smells and tastes of black cherries.

2008 Two Hands Brilliant Disguise Moscato - Smelling this wine was like walking through a peach orchard. Fresh, ripe peach flavors with a bubbly, sugar finish. This was a sparkling moscato. Not too bad, would definitely need a fruit tart or a creamy dessert to eat with this.
NV Manzanilla Romate Sherry - Made from the Palomino grape, manzanilla sherries are pretty typically very high in alcohol. This one is no exception. I've been told that I need to be at a sidewalk cafe in Spain in order to appreciate this style.
NV Amontillado Romate Sherry - I always pick this one correctly in a blind tasting because it has a strong almond finish. Hints of honey were also present.

A fantastic display of several different styles of wine, from different grapes and different regions. Rick's always does a fantastic job of offering good affordable wines and allowing customers to taste before they buy. Recommendations from your favorite wine merchant or magazine are great but at the end of the day, only you know what you like. Get out there and taste more wine!

TGIF - Thank Goodness It's Fridays Creek!

A few weeks ago the weekend section of The Washington Post was dedicated to VA and MD wineries. So when I heard that Fridays Creek winery in southern MD was having an open house, I figure...why not try it! So this weekend I drove about 30 miles to Friday Creek's open house. When I first got there, I felt like I had crashed a Harley Davidson meeting. I was one of the few people that drove there in a car. But the vineyard itself is beautiful. There is a red barn out front with a stone fountain, surrounded by gorgeous landscaping. Heavenly Ribs & Chicken was serving food and there were vendors that sold jewelry out front as well. But I was there for the wine. I checked in and received a glass and 8 drink tickets.

I entered the tasting room, which was already quite packed, and found a corner of the bar to sit my glass down and get started. There were 19 wines on the list, but with only 8 tickets, I had to pick which 8 I wanted to taste or write about. So I decided to go with some of the less noted MD wine as a starting point.

First up, Gewurtztraminer. A very pleasant, dry white with a good spicy nose. Hints of peach and honey were noted on the palate. Short finish, the taste did not linger very long.

Patio White -- This was a Friday's Creek blend that is good for, as the name suggests, the patio. Semi-sweet with mostly grape aromas, there was also a strong scent of bubble gum on the nose. Not very much fruit at all. On the palate...nothing but Hubba Bubba. As far as a great chilled wine to sip on a patio, this one is perfect. I don't think this one would be easy to pair with foods.

Sauvignon Blanc -- Only people that were fans of Fridays Creek on Facebook knew that this wine even existed. Very citrusy on the nose, not the herbal and grass aromas that are typical of a sauv blanc. The citrus aromas led to a distinct grapefruit and lemon palate with a creamy finish.

Barbera -- Raisins in my glass. Aromas of smoked meat also wafted around leading to ripe black fruit flavors and a possibly a hint of apricot. Several months aging in oak gave this wine a great oak flavor with a good balance of fruit and tannins. My favorite of all that I tasted.

Old Vine Zinfandel -- Jammy on the nose with taste of cocoa on the palate. Usually very rich and tannic, this zinfandel was surprisingly light. A bit off balance with the light taste and high alcohol, this wine revealed a smooth finish of vanilla.

Coxtown Red -- A very refreshing red with a slight fizz on it. I spoke with Tim, the Man when it came to Fridays Creek wine knowledge. He said that the Coxtown Red has a slight effervescence because they add a little extra sugar into the mix so the wine undergoes a 2nd fermentation in the bottle. From that you get extra fizz. It actually tasted like a sparkling grape juice that I used to drink before I was legal :-). Served well chilled, the bubbly red smelled as if someone had dropped grape jelly in a bit of dirt. This is one I'd like to sip on my patio.

Cerasa -- A fruit wine made from cherries, and it smelled like it. A strong red maraschino cherry aroma came from the glass of this medium pink colored wine. Very sweet, but light not syrupy. For those that like a sweet fruity wine, this is it.

That's 8 so I was all tapped out. The band was starting up so I sat down to hear them for a bit. A guy walked up to me noticing my empty glass and proceeded to hand me 6 more tickets! He said, "It's early, let's keep the party going." I couldn't agree with him more. Back to the tasting room I went! Of the 6 that I tasted, there were only 2 to note.

Chambourcin -- Nutty aromas on the front end followed by vanilla and black fruits on the palate. Good structure and balance between the rich fruits and high tannins with hints of minerals and tartness on the finish.

Chardonnay -- Aged for 6-8 months in medium toast American oak barrels, this wine shows great oak and toasty notes on the aroma and the palate, not overpowering but just enough to add an extra bit of flavor beyond the pear and apples in this wine. Yeasty flavors that are typical of Chardonnay were found on the finish.

Fridays Creek has a lot to offer as far as wines are concerned and they also feature artwork upstairs from the tasting room and in their barn. By the time I was ready to leave, the open house was in full swing with kids stomping grapes and adults dancing to the music of the bad. All in all a pretty good tasting and a great way to spend an afternoon not far from my backyard.

The Darker the Berry, the Darker the Wine

Cahors is Back, Cahors is Black, Cahors is Malbec! That statement was on the cover of the promotional materials for wine tasting I attended yesterday at The Dupont Hotel. Cahors is one of the lesser known wine regions of France, but with the fine representation yesterday, that won't be the case for long.

Cahors, located in Southwest France, became an AOC in 1971 and is now making its move to center stage with the growing popularity of Malbec around the world. Cahors producers 19.5% of all the Malbec in the world...but the greater known Malbec regions in Argentina produce over 70%. Well, Cahors was doing Malbec long before Argentina. Malbec from Cahors is affectionately nicknamed "The Black Wine" due to its dark color in the glass. At present, Cahors wine must be made with at least 70% Malbec. It's often blended with Merlot to offer rounder, mellower characteristics or Tannat to reinforce the Malbec grape flavors and to allow for greater aging potential. Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon are prohibited in Cahors blends.

Typical flavors of French Malbec are violet, black currant, cherry, licorice, vanilla, menthol, and truffle. The Cahors wines of the tasting were divided into 3 categories which made it easier to know what you may like and how to pair it before you even took a sniff or sip. Tender & Fruity, Feisty & Powerful, and Intense & Complex. The Tender & Fruity is most suited to the American palate with the fresh fruit flavors of cherry and black currant and light tannins. These wines pair perfectly with poultry or grilled meat and can even be served as an aperitif. My personal favorites were the Feisty & Powerful ones. These wines showed much more complex fruit flavors, heavier tannins and great balance in the blend.

Wines of Note from the Tasting:

Chateau la Coustarelle Grande Cuvee Prestige -- aged for 1 year in French oak but didn't impart a strong oaky taste on the palate, smooth flavors of black fruits and violets were present

Chateau Pierre Le Grand -- fresh flavors of blackberry and woodsy notes on the palate with a slightly chalky finish. great balance of fruits and tannins.

Chateau de Chambert -- very earthy on the nose but black cherry and minerals on the palate. 25% of this wine was aged for 1 yr in French oak which softened the tannins a bit and lended to a round complex finish. definitely an example of a 'black wine' with its dark dark inky color in the glass.

Chateau Armandiere Diamant Rouge -- slight hint of oak on the nose but replaced by strong black fruit and mushroom flavors on the palate. pretty high tannins in this one but the black cherry flavors provided a great balance.

A Weekend of Tasting

What a whirlwind weekend! If there were free spirits to be had, I found them this weekend! With that being said, no one wants to read (nor do I want to type that much) everything I drank. So only the best of the best will be discussed.

It all started on Friday at Cafe Atlantico at their free rum tasting. This was my first spirits tasting so I wasn't sure what to expect. There were 5 different rum producers on the 2nd and 3rd floors of the restaurant and each had at least 3 different rums to pour for tasting. We drank out of communion-like cups, which is great because I definitely did not want to go down for the count at 5pm. I started with Neisson Rum from Martinique, they had the fewest amount of people at their table at the time, and they were making 'cocktails'. That is in quotes because I'm not sure you can call it a real cocktail in that tiny cup. Pyrat from Anguilla was next, they had a rum that had been aged for 40 years! I didn't even know you aged rum that long. But I'm glad they did, it definitely had a smoother, richer oak taste. Mt Gay from Barbados was the last rum on the 2nd floor, I tasted their 3 and then moved over to the water table for a glass and a seat.

After a small break, and the realization that I hadn't had much to eat that day, I headed to the 3rd floor to see how far I could get with those. There were only 2 more so I figured that I'd be just fine. I saw a familiar rum and walked straight to it. Appleton from Jamaica! I have mixed, shot, and sipped Appleton for many years and was very interested to try the different offerings they had available. There were 4 rums for tasting each with a different age level or blend level. The best was the Reserve which had been blended with 20 different rums. Drinking a rum with that blend and age would definitely make me think twice of dumping some Coke in that glass. At my last stop was Flor de Cana of Nicaragua. It was a bit hard to enjoy this table because there were so many people standing around it just chatting. If you've already gotten your rum, move out of the way already! Apparently free t-shirts were being handed out so people lingered. Flor de Cana had 3 different rums: 5 yrs, 7 yrs, and 12 yrs. I actually liked the 7yrs the best. Not as smoky or rich as the 12 yr but much smoother than the 5 yr. I drank another glass of water and headed out. No need to hang around there, I went to the tasting by myself to go somewhere to have a conversation and maybe taste something else.

I got one of my girlfriends to come out and we met at Proof. So I chased my rum with wine! I love that Proof has 2 oz pours so that you can get a taste to see if you like it, or you can just drink several different things. I chose the latter. I ordered the cheese plate and drank a Txakolina, Ansonica/Cattaratto, and a Verdejo. The txakolina is so perfect for the summer! Crisp, refreshing, and with a slight bit of 'fizz', this Spanish grape is one to keep your eye on. Of course the entire Spanish region is definitely up and coming in the world of wine anyway. Pick your favs now so you can say you were at the beginning of the trend.

Fast Forward to the next fun tasting, Cork Wine Bar for French wines. There were 6 wines total, 2 sparklers from Limoux (white and rose), 1 sparkling Chenin Blanc and 3 types of Aligote. Or should it be 3 Aligotes...what is the plural for Aligote anyway?? As much as I love Chenin Blanc, South Africa and Vouvray, the sparkling chenin is not for me. It had a such a dry taste, none of the residual sugar or fruitiness of a regular chenin blanc. As far as the Aligote, anything from Burgundy is at the top of my list right now. Extra points because it was Aligote which you rarely see in stores, let alone at a wine bar for a tasting. There was nowhere to sit in the entire bar so no full glasses for me. I came home to enjoy a full (and free) glass of Vin de Pays d'Oc Chardonnay in front of the tv.

So sorry the weekend is over. But not to worry...tasting club is tomorrow! More French whites. I'm bringing Chablis...can't go wrong with Burgundy. Will report back tomorrow.

Spain in the Summertime

This past Sunday, I had the privilege of attending a free wine tasting of Spanish whites at Cork. Now I'm pretty familiar with reds from Spain and even some of their fortified wines, but with it being the middle of summer, I had to put the reds down. I do love my Albarinos right now, but would definitely like to see what else Spain had to offer as far as white wines are concerned.

The tasting consisted of 3 tables with 2 wines each starting with sparklers and ending with an aromatic and crisp white. I have definitely found some new wines to sip this summer, I even sat at the bar after the tasting to have a full glass of a couple of my faves. And I can add a few more grapes to my Century Club list, 100 grape varieties here I come! Here are the wines and tasting notes (according to Cork) listed below:

2008
Avinyo Vi diAgulia
Penedes

Undergoing a secondary tank fermentation, this wine has a slight fizz that made it a perfect wine to start the tasting with. With crisp, fresh flavors, this wine is best enjoyed with friends at a picnic or the start of a cookout. Serve well chilled.

Avinyo Cava
Penedes

This Cava uses the traditional grapes of Parellada, Xarel-lo, and Macabeo to create this fresh sparkling wine. It is also aged on the less for 18-22 months giving a toasty, biscuity flavor on the palate.

2007
Ameztoi Txakolina
Getaria

I had never heard of this wine or grape before in my life. But I'm sure glad I am now familiar with it. While not a sparkling wine in the sense of how it is made, but this wine uses residual carbon to give it a kinda natural 'spritzy' quality. With lime on the nose and the palate, this was definitely my favorite! Drink this as an apertif or with shrimp cocktail.

2008
Ostatu Blanco
Rioja

A blend of the viura and malvasia grapes, this wine has steely, mineral aromas. This is mainly due to the fermentation in stainless steel tanks. On the palate you get hints of bright lemon and ripe citrus fruits. Another perfect choice for these dog days of summer.

2007
Do Ferreiro Albarino
Rias Baixas

I already have a love for Albarino's, and this is another producer I can add to my list. Do Ferreiro actually adheres to organice principles in cultivating the grapes and ferments each parcel separately so that they maintain their individual character until blended for the final product. This albarino had sort of a chalky aroma, tasted of ripe peach in the palate.

2008
Vina Mein
Ribeiro

This wine is a blend of treixadura, godello, and laueria with small amounts of albarino, torrontes, albilla, and cano for good measure. Many rivers crisscross Ribeiro, which creates a cool, damp environment perfect for making clean, crisp whites. Aromas of honeysuckle, apricot, are present. On the palate, it’s slightly dry, but light bodied and refreshing, with tart apple and citrus flavors. Pair seafood with this one but go easy if you use lemon.

Oh, the things I have seen

This is Day 3 in Burgundy and I am still in amazement and often overwhelmed by the things I have seen. Just the beauty and magnificence of it all. The vineyards, the grapevines, the winemakers, the food. They feed us here like we were starved! Lunch is 4 courses!!

But I have learned so much. Today we studied the Cote de Beaune and I saw how barrels were made. The cutting of the wood, the toasting, and watched a few being put together. Lunch was with 2 winemakers who were phenomenal. I think we had about 6-7 wines at lunch. Our late afternoon tasting was at the Hospice de Beaune wine cellar. The Hospice de Beaune actually gets donations of grapes from various wine growers in the Burgundy region and they make wines from them to sell at their auction in Novemeber. A few guys from the group may be getting a barrel from the auction this year. Good luck to them...barrels go for anywhere from 3 - 10,000 euros!

Dinner is in 30 mins, another 4-5 courses and 10 wines. Gosh, this is such a hard job!!

For the Pinot Lover in You

This past Sunday, I attended a Wine Speak brunch hosted by Brenda Harrison and VinoLovers as part of their 'Wine Wisdom Weekend'. The weekend hosted several African American vintners to come out to showcase and speak about their wines. For the brunch, Mac McDonald of Vision Cellars was the featured speaker...and boy what a treat! If only everyone that talked about wine had the passion that this man has. Sitting in my chair and listening to him speak, it was like we were in my living room sipping a few glasses of wine and having a conversation. He discussed everything from how he met his wife, to how he got started in the business, and why you should always clean your glass at wine tastings. And his Pinot Noirs, to die for!!! I've had a couple before, but at this event I had the opportunity to taste some that I'd never tried. I'm so glad he also mentioned that I can find his wines in DC! A review of some of the wines I tasted is below.

OH! I can't end this post without mention of the bread pudding Brenda Harrison made and the white Hennessey cream sauce. White Hennessey is now on my 'must have' list!

Vision Cellars Anderson Valley Pinot Noir

This deep ruby colored Pinot jumps out of the glass with aromas of plum and ripe dark fruits. Once you taste it, spicyness and toast and cherries come to mind. This wine has a solid finish and as Mac McDonald says, "My wine is to drink now." So buy a bottle and enjoy once you get home.

Vision Cellars Marin County Pinot Noir

Not to be too biased ;-) but this one is my fav! The juicy berry aromas pique your interest of what's in the glass. The blueberry and pomegranate taste makes you fall in love. Then there's the hint of smoke on the finish that leaves you waiting to take that next sip.

Vision Cellars Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir

Rich aromas that are typical of your great Pinots are found in this one, blueberry and cherry. On the palate the cherry bursts through with dense, but elegant flavors. Slight hints of spice provide a long, smooth finish.