A Very Refined Evening
13 NovIt’s nice to be back on an actual college campus.
I am typing this from Small World Coffee on Witherspoon Street in Princeton Township, NJ, where I am visiting my former roommate Alex who is now making a name for himself at Princeton’s Woodrow Wilson School. All around me are people who are younger than me and much older than me: young students with nary a care in the world and gray-haired professor types. They’re nursing coffees and perhaps hangovers caused from Princeton football’s drubbing at the hands of the Yale Bulldogs yesterday. As I’m a Cal alumnus, this is a feeling I know all too well, but unlike the people keeping me company I at least am not suffering from a hangover despite sharing two excellent bottles of wine with Alex.
Those few of you who have kept up with my blog know I love Ridge Vineyards to an absurd degree. To me Ridge represents the best of California winemaking, and its wines are never disappointing. I might disagree with a few of them, but much more often I love them.
Ridge is well-known for its Zinfandel, but it made its mark on the wine world by making the legendary “Monte Bello” Cabernet. Monte Bello was selected as one of the California Cabs to go head-to-head with Bordeaux in the now-legendary Judgment of Paris of 1976. Their 1971 Monte Bello came in fifth and was the second-highest rated California Cabernet in the tasting, not bad for a wine made only nine years after the start of the winery. More tellingly, however, a re-enactment of the tasting was conducted in 2006, and the 1971 Monte Bello came in first, beating out all other California and French wines!
Tags: cabernet, California
Champagne Day at Weygandt Wines (and a Whole Lot More)
7 NovI had the opportunity to go to a media night at Weygandt Wines last Friday, on the occasion of International Champagne Day. This was Weygandt’s first effort to reach out specifically to DC food and wine bloggers, and from what I can tell it was a great success.
Weygandt Wines, located in Cleveland Park, reminds me a lot of Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant. That venerable Berkeley institution is one of my can’t miss shops whenever I visit my alma mater, and for good reason: the wines I buy from the store are perhaps the freshest, most vibrant wines I’ve ever found. KLWM is sort of like a farmers’ market for wine. If that is the case, then Weygandt Wines is sort of like the Eastern Market of wines.
The namesake of the shop, Peter Weygandt, and his wife Maria (née Metzler) have been importing boutique French wines since 1987. He has recently expanded his portfolio to include wines from Italy, Germany, Austria, Australia, and Spain. He imports some killer Beaujolais and Burgundy, and has an excellent Rhône selection. In all, they import around 70,000 cases of wine from over 100 producers.
The Weygandts were not at the media event, but the event was run by the store’s general manager, Tim O’Rourke. Tim has an interesting history, having started out as a chef. He graduated from L’Academie de Cuisine in Maryland in 2000, did tours at Café Atlántico, Ristorante Tosca, and Citronelle, and has cooked with such celebrity chefs as Daniel Boulud and Michel Richard. Being the general manager of a wine store probably has its own set of stresses, but I can imagine that it might also be very relaxed in comparison to working in some high-profile kitchens!
I had been to Weygandt only once before, and recently: I picked up a bottle of Cabernet France for an ongoing dinner with friends at Dino (which is right across the street). The store was technically closed but I sneaked in and asked who I found out later to be Tim whether he could recommend a good Cab Franc, which he did. Unfortunately, I don’t remember which bottle he selected, but it was good, and I appreciated being able to pick up a bottle after closing time (and at a substantial discount to boot!).
The event started out with a flight of six sparkling wines–one Crémant de Bourgogne and five Champagnes.
Tags: beaujolais, Burgundy, champagne, Crozes-Hermitage, France, red, Spain
A Judgment of Paris: How the Sparkling Wines of Schramsberg Stacked Up Against Champagne
26 Oct
Considering sparkling wine is like considering heaven and hell. On the one hand, you have sparklers that barely qualify as wine–Andre and Cook’s come to mind–while on the other hand you have Champagnes that will take you to the sky (related to price). I haven’t had too much sparkling wine in my life, which is a shame because they are fun, well-made, and, as many are coming to realize, are absolutely terrific with food.
Last week I was fortunate enough to be invited to a trade tasting of the sparkling wines of Schramsberg Vineyards, a venerable California sparkling wine institution located in Napa Valley, at Marcel’s in DC. I had had their wines once or twice before, but was never in a condition to remember too much about them. With this tasting I was in luck, however, because not only would I try a number of Schramsberg’s wines but would also participate in a blind tasting of Schramsberg wines and the finest French têtes de cuvée (prestige cuvée) wines.
Yikes! A blind tasting at a trade event? I felt outclassed, but I decided I would drink more than I spoke. I rolled up (on foot) to the tasting in my black suit (featured in my previous post) and heavy black backpack (at least it matched my suit!) and was greeted with a glass of Schramsberg’s Brut Rosé, which had pretty strawberry and peach aromas that were mirrored on the palate.
We were then led to long tables, where I sat next to David (the proprietor of the excellent Pearson’s Wine & Spirits in Glover Park) and the wine director of the Ritz-Carlton. The phalanx of glasses reproduced above awaited us, as well as scoring sheets:
Hugh Davies, son of the founders of Schramsberg Vineyards, gave excellent commentary and production notes throughout the whole tasting.
For the first flight, which was the blind tasting of the Schramsberg sparkling wines and the Champagnes, the idea was that we were supposed to rank the wines from first to seventh and determine if we could which were blanc de blancs and which contained Pinot Noir, and which were the Californian wines. These are my transcribed notes from A to G:
- A | aromas reminiscent of white Burgundy–hazelnut and lanolin. A long finish but a noticeable burn. | MY RANK: 6
- B | thin bodied and high acid, with notes of green apple. | MY RANK: 7
- C | wow! Clover honey and bread, tart but rich. Really freaking good. I thought this could be the oldest wine in the lineup, and could contain Pinot. | MY RANK: 2
- D | some aroma I couldn’t place… more of the Burgundy, maybe… really evocative and old-smelling. Well-balanced, with tangerine notes. | MY RANK: 1
- E | gentle floral aroma, with lemon curd. | MY RANK: 5
- F | a rich color which made me wonder if this was an older vintage. Burgundian aromas, with a round, full taste evocative of papaya and tropical fruits. I thought this might contain Pinot. | MY RANK: 3
- G | pineapple on the nose, less fruit-driven and more hazelnut on the palate. | MY RANK: 4
So how did I do on the blind tasting?
Tags: California, champagne, France
Virginia is for Wine Lovers: DC Wine Week’s “Virginia Wine Versus the World”
20 OctI often felt dislocated when I lived in LA after college. I had grown up there and my family is there, but I felt that I was lacking a community. I had left Berkeley after just having started to meet people who were interested in writing poetry. My efforts to revive some semblance of the poetry community often resulted in less-than-satisfactory results. In a similar manner, when I decided to start writing Vinicultured, I found that the LA wine blog community was fragmented. This is not to say that it doesn’t exist: it probably does. However, finding and relating to other writers/wine aficionados was a difficult proposition for a young fledgling wine blogger.
It was only when I got to DC that I started to find some semblance of a wine community. Some of my law school friends and I started the DC Wine Appreciation Society, which was basically an excuse for us to get together and drink good wine to the point of excess. I made contacts at local wine stores (like Patrick Deaner at the now-defunct Wine Specialist, Jeremy Silva at Potenza, and Phil Bernstein over at the excellent MacArthur Beverages). Working at Ansonia Wines was and continues to be an excellent and insightful experience. And starting the DC Wine Buyers Collective was a great way for me to start to get a feel for what members of the 25-35-year-old demographic wanted to drink.
With my decision to stay in DC after graduating from law school, I have had more incentive to get out there and network. Fortunately, many networking opportunities have come up, especially this past week. I was invited to a comparative tasting of Schramsberg Vineyards‘s excellent sparkling wines, which I attended yesterday afternoon, and will be first volunteering at and then covering the DC Wine Riot tomorrow and Saturday. I was also invited to DC Wine Week‘s “Washington Wine Academy Tasting Class” (a.k.a. “Virginia Wine Versus the World”), which featured Virginia wineries.
Tags: Virginia
Embracing the Funk: 2006 Francisco Alfonso Pedralonga DoUmia
19 OctWhile I’m not as dogmatic as Miles from Sideways, I do tend to stick to what I know when it comes to wine. When I go to a restaurant and have to order among white wines I don’t know, I stick to Sauvignon Blanc or dry Riesling. When I go to parties with tables covered by anonymous bottles, I choose Côtes du Rhône. At home, I really like to drink my Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, and White Burgundy (when I have the money!). With wines costing what they do, it can be difficult to commit to a bottle of wine I know nothing about (which is why doing reconnaisance is so important whenever it is possible).
I should be willing to take chances more often.
I had a bottle of the 2006 Francisco Alfonso Pedralonga DoUmia ($24) squirreled away from the January 25th deal of the DC Wine Buyers Collective. It had survived a lot longer than the other wines I acquired from that deal. I don’t know why… maybe it’s because I simply didn’t know what to expect from this wine. What if I opened it and it was undrinkable with the pot roast with which I was trying to pair it?
This wine is from the Rias Baixas region of Spain. This is a coastal region that is famous for its seafood and for a wine that pairs exceptionally well with seafood: Albariño. Such is the supremacy of Albariño that most people, myself included, don’t know that this region also produces red wine (apparently red wine only makes up 1% of the total wine production in Rias Baixas). This particular wine is composed of 70% Mencía, 20% Caiño, and 10% Espadeiro. I’ve never even heard of the Caiño or Espadeiro varietals!
A Study of Opposites: 2007 Antoine Arena “Carco” Patrimonio and the 2006 Gourt de Mautens Rasteau
11 OctI have been drinking wine for a very long time now. For the last seven of those years, I have approached wine not merely as something to drink, but something to think about, something that could elicit sheer joy or wonderment, calm or even fear.* I come across as pedantic or stuffy sometimes, I guess, but for me it’s far more satisfying to really delve into what each and every wine has to offer.**
A few weeks ago I was invited to a dinner with Jillian and David at Chez Kate et Rahul. As I mentioned in my previous post, it’s been hard for me to quench my thirst for interesting wines lately. So, in addition to being pleased to be able to see my good friends Kate ‘n’ Rahul and Jillian ‘n’ David, I was pleased to have an excuse to bring a bottle of Chenin Blanc recommended to me by Phil over at MacArthur Beverages (at left):
The Saumur appellation is located in the Loire Valley of France. The Loire Valley–especially the region of Vouvray and to a lesser extent Montlouis-sur-Loire–is known for its Chenin Blanc. I think Chenin Blanc is one of the underrated great grapes of the world.*** The best examples of Chenin Blanc have great acidity and taste of honey, almonds, and flowers. Like Riesling and Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc can be aged to great effect. I’ve had Chenin Blanc from 1983 and 1989, and when aged these wines take on low, nutty, waxy notes that are just incredible. Best of all, just like old Rioja blanco, aged Chenin Blanc can be relatively affordable.
Tags: chenin blanc, France, grenache, sangiovese
Rainy Day Recipes: French Fry Tortilla
4 Oct
It has been a very long time since I’ve last posted. My apologies! Much has happened since I posted my last entry at the end of March. I just celebrated eight months with a special person, I graduated from law school, and I took the California bar exam. I am also back in DC, despite my previous plans of going back home to Los Angeles.
It’s a tough market for would-be lawyers. I am working part-time at the Office of Student Affairs at the law school, and supplementing that income with wages from moving boxes and delivering wine for Ansonia Wines on Saturdays. Needless to say, with law school loans coming due and the expenses of living on my own mounting, I have very little money leftover for purchasing wine. (I have been drinking pretty well, regardless… a lot more beer and liquors.) Mary Kate and I have been enjoying a box of Maipe Malbec recently. In fact, we’re on our second box. We saw the boxes at Total Wine, and as I’m a fan of Maipe we decided to pick some up for everyday consumption. Though not the most refined wine, it is delicious, easy to drink, and a wonderful value at around $25-$30 for three liters (FOUR BOTTLES!) of wine that stays fresh for weeks.
I am also fortunate to be eating well despite my budgetary constraints. Mary Kate and I cook at home often, and we also eat take-out from delicious, high quality-to-price ratio restaurants like El Pollo Rico, El Charrito Caminante, Fast Gourmet, Iota, and Shake Shack. We usually find ourselves with leftovers, which are generally eaten as-is.
However, some leftovers need a bit more… finessing. For instance, it’s one thing to gnaw on a cold rack of pork ribs (Rhodeside Grill) or slurp down reheated Szechuan lo mein (Great Wall Szechuan House). What do you do with cold french fries?
Restaurant Review: Firefly DC
27 MarIt’s tough being a student in DC sometimes. Unlike LA or Berkeley or NY, DC seems to have a dearth of good, cheap food. It’s sorely lacking in great street food (although there are a number of food trucks nowadays, like Wonky Dog and the Fojol Brothers) and has barely any serviceable $10-$20 dinner options. It does, however, have some excellent high end restaurants like, oh I don’t know, Citronelle.
So it’s nice to find a solid restaurant with well-executed food and great service. Firefly fits the bill perfectly. In a nutshell, it’s a wonderful place to have happy hour drinks with a few friends or take a date: it’s cozy without seeming small, social without being loud, and as comforting as a warm woolen blanket. It is a bit more expensive than it looks like it should be, but still worth the price.
Mary Kate and I went to Firefly for dinner this past weekend and it did not disappoint. We started with a cocktail each: she had the grapefruit spritz and I had the tarragon fizz. The grapefruit spritz was a glorified greyhound and a bit too sweet for my taste. However, the tarragon fizz was right up my alley, with tarragon-infused vodka and St. Germaine, fresh lemon, and topped off by sparkling wine. It was garnished with some sliced tarragon and was pleasantly herbal; it was a nice aperitif.
Tags: California, pinot noir
Two Sips of the Beaujolais “Vintage of a Lifetime”
21 MarThere are dichotomies in the world of wine and partisans for both. For instance, Old World versus New World, Burgundy versus Bordeaux, oaked versus unoaked. Another one that I haven’t read about online but have experienced frequently first-hand deals with Beaujolais: specifically, people tend to either love or hate Beaujolais. (Assuming they’ve had any Beaujolais to begin with.)
This is understandable. My first experience with Beaujolais was in 2005, when I was still an RA at Berkeley. I purchased a bottle of basic Beaujolais from Kermit Lynch. I chilled it, just as the KLWM staff recommended, and served it to a few guests. None of my guests liked it. It was too thin, too acidic, a washed-out excuse of a wine. I agreed with them to an extent, but there was something about it that I liked.
A few years (and a whole helluva lotta bottles of Beaujolais) later I’ve managed to articulate what I like about Beaujolais. It’s not just one thing; there are many great things that make Beaujolais one of my favorite appellations. For starters, it is inexpensive. You can buy some serious bottles for less than $25.00, and you can buy most for under $20.00. It is a joyful wine, one that you chill and gulp down, especially because Beaujolais is low alcohol (anywhere between 11-13% ABV). It goes well with a wide variety of foods, from roast chicken to fish, and even to red meats. Finally, it’s just tasty, full of fresh fruit but with some of the better examples featuring dark earth, minerality, and significant structure.
Tags: beaujolais, gamay
