Over the past five years main stream Americans have developed a sort of love affair with Australia's wines. The reasons behind this sudden infatuation are multifaceted. One need only look toward the reasonable prices and the exceedingly over the top fruity nature of these wines to explain why the "Land Down Under" has gained such sex appeal in the wine arena. This relationship however may be coming to an abrupt end with the 2007 and now 2008 vintages. The 2007 vintage yielded such an extremely small amount that prices were driven up, merely by the principles of supply and demand. Slowly but surely, the cost affordability side of this fragile equation seems to be evaporating.
Now the reports on the 2008 growing season are in and they don't paint a pretty picture. In fact they could represent one of the proverbial final nails in the coffin. The Hunter Valley region was hit with record flooding in early February. The end result was water soaked grapes and rampant rot in the vineyards the ultimately caused 85% of the harvest to be discarded. Such a monumental loss affects both the prices and quality of the wine. In Southern Australia, the wine regions were hit with 15 consecutive days where the mercury hit 95 degree F. or higher. This type of weather produced super ripe sugar filled grapes which will turn the normal fermentation process on its ears. Finally, and probably the most devastating turn of events has been the prolonged and ongoing drought conditions in the South, particularly Langhorne Creek. Growers estimate that they have lost 3/4 of the total Cabernet Sauvignon producing acres.
Bottom line is that the 2008 vintage will be Australian winemakers most challenging to date. In fact, working with such a damaged crop could prove impossible even for Australia’s notorious "science lab" approach to winemaking. The resulting product may be too rich even for America's sweet tooth mentality toward wine. In terms of my personal preferences, I've never been a fan of Australia's "fruit bombs", and given the rough treatment Mother Nature has dished up for our Aussie friends, I doubt very highly that my taste will change in the near future.
***For more information on this topic, there is an article in Wine Spectator, the July 31, 2008 editions in the "Up Front " column.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Book Signing at Costco in Edison, June 11, 2008
I had a chance today to visit Gary Vaynerchuk at his book signing at the Costco in Edison tonight. Despite the horrible drive during the heart of rush hour, I figured my first time attending a book-signing would be worth it. He was gracious enough to sign two books for me--mine as well as one for Anthony, who was not able to make it (I figured he'd have little problem swapping one of his paperbacks for a personalized, autographed copy).
After talking for a few minutes about his recent travels and plans for the summer, I did also manage to get a family member of his to take a picture of us:
He does plan on another affair at the Wine Library this summer, similar to last time in format, and will be making us aware of it in upcoming episodes of WineLibrary. He also plans to add a calendar of his whereabouts throughout the summer on the winelibrary.com website.
A mix-up in the hours posted could mean a longer night than Gary had planned. Originally scheduled from 7pm-9pm, the hours of the signing had been changed to 5pm-7pm (I got my e-mail alert from winelibary.com), but I suppose MANY others did not get that memo, as I did not wait very long on line to chat with him. Amusing was a remark he had made--I was talking with another guy on line to Gary about the likely mix-up, who then added by mentioning to Gary that there could be a post-7pm rush to meet him. Realizing this, he replied, "Oh, shit".
After talking for a few minutes about his recent travels and plans for the summer, I did also manage to get a family member of his to take a picture of us:
He does plan on another affair at the Wine Library this summer, similar to last time in format, and will be making us aware of it in upcoming episodes of WineLibrary. He also plans to add a calendar of his whereabouts throughout the summer on the winelibrary.com website.
A mix-up in the hours posted could mean a longer night than Gary had planned. Originally scheduled from 7pm-9pm, the hours of the signing had been changed to 5pm-7pm (I got my e-mail alert from winelibary.com), but I suppose MANY others did not get that memo, as I did not wait very long on line to chat with him. Amusing was a remark he had made--I was talking with another guy on line to Gary about the likely mix-up, who then added by mentioning to Gary that there could be a post-7pm rush to meet him. Realizing this, he replied, "Oh, shit".
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
July 19 Wine Tasting--The Battle of Gaul!
Hello everyone. I thought I'd unveil the proposed theme of our next wine tasting, as we ease back into our hectic lives after a full holiday weekend.
On July 19, our wine tasting will feature various red and white wines from France. The plan is to have most major regions represented (Burgundy, Bordeaux, Alsace, Rhone, Loire, Languedoc-Roussillon, and Provence) as well as one curve ball (keeping with tradition!). Given how well our last wine tasting went with the variety we had to sample, I am also going to offer eight wines (probably either a 5 red/3 white or 6 red/2 white combination). I'm interested in keeping the selections anonymous until our ultimate unveiling during dinner, but am not against hearing your thoughts on this approach.
We have still have ample time to consider what will be on the menu for the event, so no urgency in offering up what you'd like to prepare or bring to dinner. I plan to keep the cost of the wines in line with other wine tastings over the years (typically between $30-$40 per person, depending on attendance).
Looking forward to it!
On July 19, our wine tasting will feature various red and white wines from France. The plan is to have most major regions represented (Burgundy, Bordeaux, Alsace, Rhone, Loire, Languedoc-Roussillon, and Provence) as well as one curve ball (keeping with tradition!). Given how well our last wine tasting went with the variety we had to sample, I am also going to offer eight wines (probably either a 5 red/3 white or 6 red/2 white combination). I'm interested in keeping the selections anonymous until our ultimate unveiling during dinner, but am not against hearing your thoughts on this approach.
We have still have ample time to consider what will be on the menu for the event, so no urgency in offering up what you'd like to prepare or bring to dinner. I plan to keep the cost of the wines in line with other wine tastings over the years (typically between $30-$40 per person, depending on attendance).
Looking forward to it!
Friday, May 23, 2008
Dinner and Wine in Colorado Springs
Despite a schedule of training during the day and catching up on work e-mails at night, I had a unique opportunity to treat myself to sampling various wines during dinnertime each night in Colorado. Specifically, I had 6 different glasses of wine spread out over four evenings, and I thought I'd share some notes I have on them, ranking them on our 1-5 scale from worst to first:
6. 2007 Il Vicino Sangiovese, from the Gruet Winery, New Mexico-this red from the Southwest was very reminiscent of cranberry juice in it's appearance and body. It was very tight on the nose, almost completely absent of odor. Upon tasting, I noticed it was very light on the alcohol, but oddly, very hot, albeit brief. There was a hint of sour and bitter elements (like accidently eating the stem with the unripened grape). It has no length whatsoever. It was an awkward selection--maybe some more time to mature would do this selection some good, but for now, especially at $21.00/bottle, the best I can rate it is a 2.
5. 2006 Jake's Fault Shiraz, from California--immediately reeking of Listerine or some type of all-purpose cleanser, I was a bit disappointed with this start, particularly after seeing it comes in at around $10.99. It appeared to have a medium body to it, and a nice purple color. It was very fruity to the taste, but lacked balance. I caught tastes of the fruit then got sideswiped by alcohol. It didn't have much of a finish and left almost like a taste of a fruit rind on my pallette in the end. Maybe some more time to age or maybe something as simple as decanting might bring some help to this wine--not terrible, but only it's price let's me bolster this effort to a 2.5.
4. 2006 Clo du Bois Pinot Grigio, from France--whites did get their chance to showcase their stuff in these dinners as well. This wine had a very light, transparent, yellow tint to it. It smelled like Jolly Rancher candies, particularly melon. There were also hints of citrus fruits on the nose as well. The taste reminded me of Reislings I've tried in the past, where they had a nice balance of alcohol and fruit tones. It ended with some heat, which was somewhat of a turnoff, but at around $12.00/bottle, the wine did a nice job, enough for a 3.0.
3. 2006 Rosemont Estates Shiraz, from Australia--This was a different experience for me, but worth discussing. It was very dark and opaque and had a medium body to it. The smell was pure unwashed vegetables, where the odor of dirt could be discerned. There was also a wood presence. The taste was an unusual mix to me of the right amount of alcohol and vegetables, like steamed broccoli or asparagus. But, as I spent some time sipping it again and again when paired with my dinner, some sweetness started to surface. Lastly, the wine had a nice length to it to end. This wasn't bad at all, and with a $9.99 pricetag retail (It wasn't that low in the hotel, however), I liked it! I didn't love it, so it's fair this wine, too, receives a 3.0.
2. 2006 Meridian Pinot Grigio, from California--It appears my penchant for always gravitating to and really liking very inexpensive wine every once in a while continues, where this <$8.00 wine crept into my #2 position. This wine had the body of a white grape juice, or even the Chardonnay that took the gold for the white wines at our South American wine-tasting. It bore a floral and sour nose, keeping pace with the white grape juice appearance. Well, after getting hammered with an initial blast of alcohol, this white calmed down VERY nicely and had a very surprising and balanced length. The taste was a fruit salad, where sour and sweet components mixed very well and seemed to overtake the alcohol after a few moments. It's ability to calm down after an initial try and subsequent tries, and it's terrific mix with my chicken dish made it a winning Place bet for me--3.5.
1. 2007 Kim Crawford Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, from New Zealand--I had a bad experience with Sauvignon Blanc in the past, but was willing to try it again. With a high recommendation from the waiter given my Spanish Chicken dish I was planning to order, I went for this $14 wine (again, higher at the hotel). The color was a pale yellow color with an overwhelming citrus nose to it, overcoming any other scents that surfaced (which included lemon drops or lemon meringue pie). The taste was almost that of a perfectly mixed drink of Ocean Spray Grapefruit juice and alcohol. The alcohol was kept at bay but competed well with the tart nature of the citrus components. It had a very long length to it and stayed consistent with it's taste from start to finish. I was very pleasantly surprised, and also found it rather redeeming this wine was a Wines & Spirits and Wine Spectator 91. What a highly unusual taste for a wine, but what a terrific job! 4.5!
6. 2007 Il Vicino Sangiovese, from the Gruet Winery, New Mexico-this red from the Southwest was very reminiscent of cranberry juice in it's appearance and body. It was very tight on the nose, almost completely absent of odor. Upon tasting, I noticed it was very light on the alcohol, but oddly, very hot, albeit brief. There was a hint of sour and bitter elements (like accidently eating the stem with the unripened grape). It has no length whatsoever. It was an awkward selection--maybe some more time to mature would do this selection some good, but for now, especially at $21.00/bottle, the best I can rate it is a 2.
5. 2006 Jake's Fault Shiraz, from California--immediately reeking of Listerine or some type of all-purpose cleanser, I was a bit disappointed with this start, particularly after seeing it comes in at around $10.99. It appeared to have a medium body to it, and a nice purple color. It was very fruity to the taste, but lacked balance. I caught tastes of the fruit then got sideswiped by alcohol. It didn't have much of a finish and left almost like a taste of a fruit rind on my pallette in the end. Maybe some more time to age or maybe something as simple as decanting might bring some help to this wine--not terrible, but only it's price let's me bolster this effort to a 2.5.
4. 2006 Clo du Bois Pinot Grigio, from France--whites did get their chance to showcase their stuff in these dinners as well. This wine had a very light, transparent, yellow tint to it. It smelled like Jolly Rancher candies, particularly melon. There were also hints of citrus fruits on the nose as well. The taste reminded me of Reislings I've tried in the past, where they had a nice balance of alcohol and fruit tones. It ended with some heat, which was somewhat of a turnoff, but at around $12.00/bottle, the wine did a nice job, enough for a 3.0.
3. 2006 Rosemont Estates Shiraz, from Australia--This was a different experience for me, but worth discussing. It was very dark and opaque and had a medium body to it. The smell was pure unwashed vegetables, where the odor of dirt could be discerned. There was also a wood presence. The taste was an unusual mix to me of the right amount of alcohol and vegetables, like steamed broccoli or asparagus. But, as I spent some time sipping it again and again when paired with my dinner, some sweetness started to surface. Lastly, the wine had a nice length to it to end. This wasn't bad at all, and with a $9.99 pricetag retail (It wasn't that low in the hotel, however), I liked it! I didn't love it, so it's fair this wine, too, receives a 3.0.
2. 2006 Meridian Pinot Grigio, from California--It appears my penchant for always gravitating to and really liking very inexpensive wine every once in a while continues, where this <$8.00 wine crept into my #2 position. This wine had the body of a white grape juice, or even the Chardonnay that took the gold for the white wines at our South American wine-tasting. It bore a floral and sour nose, keeping pace with the white grape juice appearance. Well, after getting hammered with an initial blast of alcohol, this white calmed down VERY nicely and had a very surprising and balanced length. The taste was a fruit salad, where sour and sweet components mixed very well and seemed to overtake the alcohol after a few moments. It's ability to calm down after an initial try and subsequent tries, and it's terrific mix with my chicken dish made it a winning Place bet for me--3.5.
1. 2007 Kim Crawford Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, from New Zealand--I had a bad experience with Sauvignon Blanc in the past, but was willing to try it again. With a high recommendation from the waiter given my Spanish Chicken dish I was planning to order, I went for this $14 wine (again, higher at the hotel). The color was a pale yellow color with an overwhelming citrus nose to it, overcoming any other scents that surfaced (which included lemon drops or lemon meringue pie). The taste was almost that of a perfectly mixed drink of Ocean Spray Grapefruit juice and alcohol. The alcohol was kept at bay but competed well with the tart nature of the citrus components. It had a very long length to it and stayed consistent with it's taste from start to finish. I was very pleasantly surprised, and also found it rather redeeming this wine was a Wines & Spirits and Wine Spectator 91. What a highly unusual taste for a wine, but what a terrific job! 4.5!
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Vernaccia : A Dry Italian White Worth Noticing
Hello All,
As we approach the warm months of summer, it only stands to reason that wine lovers will begin looking towards whites to accompany the lighter meals of the season. One such white wine worth looking into is Vernaccia from Tuscany. I recently picked up a bottle of 2006 Vernaccia Di San Gimignano, from Le Rote winery/vinard. I was again pleasantly surprised that this $10.98 bottle of wine was quite interesting and delicious. This wine is a DOCG or super Tuscan and is made up of the Vernaccia grape. It should be noted that DOCG guidelines do allow for this wine to be made up of 10% Chardonnay. When I popped the bottle and poured I noticed a natural effervescence in a wine of light yellow color. It contained quite an interesting nose of sweet lemon/lime with a slight hint of pear. Such an ordor would normally prepare one for a wine sweet as candy, but the surprise happens once it hits your pallet. There was just a hint of sweetness at the onset which quickly dries out. The mid pallet is bitter but slowly fades into a slight lingering taste of vanilla( could be that 10% Chardonnay coming through...who knows). If there is a noticeable flaw it is that the bitterness lasts a bit too long on the mid pallet. But, it is a minor flaw that I can certainly live with. I would rank this a 3.5 on our 4 scale. A winner in my book and I can definitely see myself going out of my way to buy a few more bottles for the summer 3 day weekends. Check it out of if you can.
As we approach the warm months of summer, it only stands to reason that wine lovers will begin looking towards whites to accompany the lighter meals of the season. One such white wine worth looking into is Vernaccia from Tuscany. I recently picked up a bottle of 2006 Vernaccia Di San Gimignano, from Le Rote winery/vinard. I was again pleasantly surprised that this $10.98 bottle of wine was quite interesting and delicious. This wine is a DOCG or super Tuscan and is made up of the Vernaccia grape. It should be noted that DOCG guidelines do allow for this wine to be made up of 10% Chardonnay. When I popped the bottle and poured I noticed a natural effervescence in a wine of light yellow color. It contained quite an interesting nose of sweet lemon/lime with a slight hint of pear. Such an ordor would normally prepare one for a wine sweet as candy, but the surprise happens once it hits your pallet. There was just a hint of sweetness at the onset which quickly dries out. The mid pallet is bitter but slowly fades into a slight lingering taste of vanilla( could be that 10% Chardonnay coming through...who knows). If there is a noticeable flaw it is that the bitterness lasts a bit too long on the mid pallet. But, it is a minor flaw that I can certainly live with. I would rank this a 3.5 on our 4 scale. A winner in my book and I can definitely see myself going out of my way to buy a few more bottles for the summer 3 day weekends. Check it out of if you can.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
A Review of a Montepulciano D'Abruzzi
For this Wednesday's entry I thought I'd continue the trend of sharing my experiences with the everyday wines. This week I opened a 2004 Antonio & Elio Monti Montepulciano D'Abruzzi and I must say I think I found another winner that falls into the under $10.00 category. I picked up this bottle at Bottle King for $8.98. This wine is obviously from Italy, the Abruzzi region in the South East portion of the peninsula. It is made entirely from the Montepulciano grape, which is a major variety in southern Italy. Using our customary 4 point scale, I would rank this bunch of grapes at a 3.5. Let me explain my rationale. Lets begin with color, this is a deep reddish brown wine with medium body. By no means a big heavy red that might be confused with the Barolos or Brunellos. The wine has decent legs upon swirling. The next order of business is the odor or in the words of Gary the "sniffy sniff". I observed a strong odor of leather and earth, with a slight hint of cherry. Not very exciting or interesting, but if you can get past this little disappointment, I think you will be pleasantly surprised. The tasting experience began with a smooth dryness, with hints of mocha or dark chocolate. There is some bitterness on the mid pallet, but it fades quickly. Tannins are medium to low. Virtually no fruit taste or sugar for that matter. To me, a lover of the dry earthy wines of Italy, this is perfect. The kicker is the overall smoothness of the wine, which is very high on my enjoyment scale. Finally, in terms of longevity, it is also a winner, I opened the bottle on Sunday and the wine held together Monday and Tuesday being stored at room temperature after being hand vacuumed pumped. I were to take a guess, I would say JP would be won over by the smoothness. Hard to say how the rest of the gang will fall, but at $9.00 “Bones” (Gary again) a bottle, why not try it this weekend. Anyway, that's my thought for the day.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Pics of the South American Wine Tasting
Very cool time and some very cool wines. Who would have thought that we would find so many good wines from Chile and Argentina. I will post the tasting notes soon, but I wanted to get the pictures up tonight. Next time, I'll have to remember to get myself in the picture and take a few more.
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