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.

The N.V. Chermette Crémant de Bourgogne Brut, made of 100% Chardonnay, was lean and almost stony.  It wasn’t fruity per se, but it did have some citrus character.  It was tasty but not especially interesting (especially in relation to the Albert Sounit Crémants carried by Ansonia Wines).  The next wine, a bonafide Champagne, was the N.V. J.L. Vergnon Brut “Conversation”, a blanc de blancs that had tropical fruits on the palate a tart green apple on the finish.  This one was refreshing and would be perfect as an aperitif.

The next two wines were from Nathalie Falmet and were both non-vintage.  The Brut Nature, made with no added sugar (hence the “nature” in the name), had ripe apple and a nice round mouthfeel.  Even better than that, though, was the Le Val Cornet Brut, which had even more apple–the finish reminded me of the bitterness you get from apple skin, not a bad thing–and was fuller than the Brut Nature.

Bringing up the rear were the N.V. Philippe Prié “Depuis 1737″ Brut Tradition and the N.V. Nicolas Maillart “Platine” Premier Cru.  The Prié had what I thought was some noticeable malolactic character, and while I tasted some stone fruit/apple on the palate, the thing that struck me about this wine was the hint of something non-fruity.  I couldn’t quite put my finger on it: maybe it was herbaceous, maybe it was minerally, maybe it was even a bit of sous bois.  Whatever it was, however, it was quite attractive.

The Maillart had rich fruit–like an apple and quince tart–and very nice body.  The Prié and the Maillart were my two favorite Champagnes of the evening.

But we had more to go.  Derek of the Weekly Wine Pick started off round two by contributing a bottle of grand cru Burgundy he had picked up from MacArthur Beverages’s bargain bin for around $20 or $30.  The 1983 Domaine des Lambrays Clos des Lambrays grand cru was created during my birth year and, like me, seems to have faded with age.  You can see its brick color in the picture below.  It had a cranberry nose, and the palate reminded me vaguely of pine nuts.  It was very light and had a short finish.  While pleasant, it was clearly past its prime.  I did appreciate being able to try such an old wine!

By this point I had decided to purchase a one-way ticket to Drunksville (business class, mind you).  So, I made a rounds of the store and my eyes settled on the Rhône.  But Southern Rhône or Northern Rhône?  I asked Tim for a recommendation, and we settled on the 2009 Yann Chave “Le Rouvre” Crozes Hermitage, a bargain at $29.99.  This Syrah, along with the pair of Beaujolais cru I will be mentioning soon, was my favorite wine of the evening.  It offered up a beautiful nose of dried herbs, violet, and anise, and the palate was a cornucopia of flavor: raisin, graphite, minerals. Relatively light-bodied, it had good acid and moderate tannins, with a long finish.  I could drink this all night long (and I did), and I could not believe how well it was drinking!

I would have stuck with that wine, had I not mentioned casually to Tim that I loved Beaujolais.  He instantly offered to find an older Beaujolais cru somewhere from the recesses of the store.  He brought back a 2007 Domaine Pierre Savoye Morgon, but when I mentioned also that I loved the ’09 Beaujolais vintage but had not yet tried the ’10s, he graciously opened up a bottle of the 2010 Daniel Bouland Chiroubles as well.

My loyal readers will know how much I freaking love Beaujolais.  To me, Beaujolais is a happy wine that can be put to serious use.  It pairs well with nearly everything, but when eating is not the point it is also just terrific to gulp and guzzle by itself.  Beaujolais cru are more complex, but at their price point (usually $15-$30, tops) it’s not a shame to use them just to slake one’s thirst.

The Morgon was more mineral and “cheese” than fruit.  It was a complex, delicious wine that was like the flirty bookish sister of a nice premier cru Burgundy.  The Chiroubles, by contrast, was all light cranberry and reminded some tasters of bubble gum.  It was juicy, bright, and just plain fun.  If the Morgon was the flirty bookish sister of a nice Burgundy, then the Chiroubles was the youngest sister everyone’s worried about.

After the Beaujolais came a trio of other wines.   Someone chipped in the 2009 Font Sarade Vacqueyras, and if I recall correctly Jessica and Jonathan of Jessica In Search Of… bought a bottle of 2009 Alfredo Maestro Viña Almante “La Olmera” Tempranillo (from the Castilla y León region of Ribera del Duero).  Aaron from Hogshead: A Wine Blog contributed a bottle of 2010 Domaine des Soulanes “Kaya” from the Roussillon.  The Vacqueyras, composed of Grenache, Mourvèdre, and Syrah, was a darker older cousin to the Chave Crozes-Hermitage, all tangled vines, leather, and green olives.  The Alfredo Maestro was juicy and fresh and reminded me of a Rioja crianza.  The Kaya, made of 100% Carignan, didn’t make too much of an impression on me, I’m afraid, because by the time I got to it the drunk train was nearly to the station.

Overall, this was a terrific event and I met some wonderful bloggers, some of whom have scooped me on this story.  The wines I tried at Weygandt were all at least good–many of them were excellent, and both Beaujolais were inspirational.  I would like to try some more of Weygandt’s Rhône portfolio, too.  My thanks to Tim, Weygandt Wines, and all the bloggers and people who made this such an awesome evening.

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!

So, when Phil from MacArthur Beverages recommended this bottle to me I was a bit nervous.  But Phil knows his wine, so I decided to go with it.

Mary Kate and I opened a bottle of this to accompany our New Haven-style white clam pie from Pete’s Apizza in Clarendon.  What can I say?  This was really f*cking good, but in a way that skirted very close to potential disaster.

I say this because this was a funky, funky wine.  Funky in a savage Southern Rhône way.  It was almost so dark and funky that I thought it might have been hit by the brett train, but it was good.  Stewed fruit on the nose.  The mouthfeel was great–there was a surprising petillance which, with the wine’s ciderlike acidity, kept the wine from going irrevocably to the dark side.  Mary Kate said this wine tasted smoky; this wine was not characterized by fruit as much as it was characterized by things like smoke, wet soil, mushroom.  The DoUmia was quaffable, yet complex, and succulent as heck.

The wine was a surprisingly good pairing for our white clam pie.  The carbonation and acid were refreshing (they helped wash away the greasiness of the pizza), and the funk was a good complement to the the white sauce.  I think, however, that this wine would make an ever better pairing for a pizza with tomato sauce, maybe with mushroom, caramelized onion, or sausage.

I would like to tell you to pick up a bottle, but this wine is really not for everyone.  I can imagine that on another day–perhaps if it were hotter or in a celebratory mood–I might not have liked the wine.  Perhaps it would be better for you to pick up a bottle and hold onto it for a while, waiting for an occasion where a smoky, funky, high-acid wine with a touch of carbonation would be appropriate.

Thus, my efforts to become a serious wine collector were put on hold for the past three years.  BUT NO LONGER!  ”How?” I hear you, my one reader, asking.

I am back at home now (though I haven’t been able to have much fun… “Spring Break” for law school means “catch up with all the work you haven’t done / do all the work you’ve been assigned over Spring Break,” and I’m also busy with my very late moral character and fitness application for the state bar and with studying for the MPRE) and, as breaks from work, I have been cooking quite often.  For instance, on Monday evening I made choucroute garnie and on Tuesday I made roasted lemon chicken with roasted pine nut and lemon cous cous and sauteed broccolini.  One of the standout wines from this week?  The 2000 R. López de Heredia Viña Tondonia Rosé Gran Reserva, an 11-freaking-year-old rosé!!!

Made from 30% Tempranillo, 60% Garnacho, and 10% Viura, this wine is an absolutely gorgeous copper/salmon color.  I am at a loss to describe this wine–there’s definitely oxidation from the long aging (four and a half years in barrel and five and a half in bottle before release!!!), something approaching savory and tangy, with metallic notes and just the suggestion of cantaloupe.  I don’t think anyone else in my family really liked this wine: this is not a bottle you’d take to a casual barbecue.  However, at $27.99, this is a fantastic wine to bring to a tasting of esoteric wines, and a terrific way to try a Gran Reserva at a very low price.

I of course purchased this and a few other bottles from Mission Wines in South Pasadena.  I had noticed that they were offering 36- and 52-case wine lockers for rent, and while at the store I inquired about renting one.  Luckily, they had a few left, and I just signed a one-year contract for a 36-case wine locker.  It’s temperature- and humidity-controlled and under lock and key.  Many of the regulars at Mission Wines have lockers at the store.  I detected quite a few choice bottles (CdPs, Barolos, Sea Smoke, Caymus, magnums, etc., etc.) which made me quite envious.

I couldn’t very well leave the locker empty, so I bought two bottles to inaugurate it.  The first is an old favorite, the 2007 Bodegas Alejandro Fernández Tinto Pesquera from the Ribera del Duero region of Spain.  The second is a Bordeaux recommended to me by Chris, Mission Wines’s owner: the 2005 Chateau Potensac from the Medoc appellation of Bordeaux, France.  I intend to keep these two bottles in the locker for as long as I have it… if I can control myself.  Chris was nice enough to give me a discount on those wines and a free glass of Craftsman Brewery’s Heavenly Hefe, which had nice lemon notes atop a solid foundation of wheaty goodness.

Now all that’s left is to fill up the locker.  It can store 432 bottles, so I have a ways to go: at least now I have somewhere to keep my wines!

I will be in California for five more weeks, after which I will be headed back to DC for a few days, and then eight weeks in beautiful Wilmington, Delaware, known in legal circles as one of the locations of the Court of Chancery (where I’ll be interning) and known in pop culture circles as the nameless setting of Fight Club.  Hopefully during this time there will be wine, wine, and more wine.  If this past week has been any indication, there will be plenty of that this summer!

I have to write a few posts, one of Deep Sea Wines (which was gracious enough to send me two bottles to review), another for a great product known as the Wine Diaper (it’s probably not what you think it is), and yet another for a book by Matthew Frank entitled Barolo.  And, I’ll have to write about a very wonderful evening at Founding Farmers in DC at which a bottle of Riesling figured prominently–that’ll be coming soon.  All of these will take place in good time, but before I do I wanted to “clear the palate,” so to speak, by writing about a few of the wines I’ve had at home.

One of my habits while at home is to buy a few bottles with which to tide over my mom until my next visit.  I had purchased a few bottles during Spring Break, and to my surprise (and pleasure) I found that one of the bottles had not yet been opened.

This bottle was the Candidus from Malm Cellars.  Malm Cellars is a one-person show, helmed by Brendan Malm.  He doesn’t have a winery or vineyard, but he sources fruit from select growers to make his wines.  One such wine, his 2007 Sonoma County Pinot Noir, garnered a great review from the LA Times.  The Candidus, which is made from a bunch of undisclosed white Rhône varietals (but also apparently includes Chardonnay concentrate according to Dave from Mission Wines), is about $16.  It’s intensely aromatic–I’m thinking Viognier or Muscat (though I’m not sure if Muscat is a Rhône varietal)–with an assertive nose of quince and honey.  It’s pear-colored and appears on the viscous side.  Excellent: full of dried apricot and citrus, full bodied yet light, good acidity, very pleasant.

Forget the Pinot Grigio or Pinot Gris for the upcoming summer–this wine is a refresher for those who want more heft.  Think of a blond Christina Hendricks:

Yum.

The Candidus was good even on the second day, but alas, a 750 mL bottle only lasts so long.  My third day at home and there was nothing left to drink!  A trip to Mission Wines was in order.

One of the great things about Mission Wines–at least if you’ve gone there for years like I have, now–is that they always have a few bottles open to try.  Matthew was manning the bar and he poured me a few drinks:

• 2009 Torii Pinot Gris | Willamette Valley, Oregon | notwithstanding my Pinot Gris/Grigio bashing above, this was a wonderful example of the varietal.  Great acidity, lemon curd, flowers, and minerality.  Hits you right in front of the mouth and doesn’t let go.
• 2009 Bella “Special Release” rosé | Sonoma Coast (?), California | made from a blend of Grenache and Syrah, this rosé packed a serious color (almost as dark as a light Burgundy or Beaujolais, as dark as a rosé made from Malbec) and serious flavor: peach, watermelon Jolly Rancher.  Think of this as Domaine Tempier’s um, racier backwater cousin.
• 2007 Louis Jadot Côte de Nuits Villages “Le Vaucrain” | Côte de Nuits, Burgundy, France | a village-level Burgundy, tart but with a nice mouthfeel and a satisfying mid-palate.  Fig, membrillo.  A perfect bistro wine, served chilled with steak tartare on the side, and at the mid-twenties at the perfect price.
• 2004 Bodegas Luzon “Alma de Luzon” | Jumilla, Spain | more on this below.

Upon Matthew’s recommendation I picked up a bottle of the 2007 Weinhof Scheu Spätburgunder from the Pfalz region of Germany ($15.99) and, a day or so later, a bottle of the aforementioned Alma de Luzon.  The Spätburgunder, which is German for Pinot Noir, was fantastic!  Never mind the long, narrow Riesling-type bottle in which it arrives: this is serious red wine.  A light brick color, it is full of tart cranberry and has hints of earth, very light-bodied and excellent chilled.  This is serious value for the money: leave it to the Germans to deliver efficient, precise wine.

The Alma de Luzon is a Jorge Ordoñez selection, so you know it’s good.  The first release, this normally retails for $67 but given the poor economy, its distributors unloaded quite a few cases to Mission where it is going for $27.99 a bottle.  This is an insanely low price for a very good wine.  It’s rare that everyone in my family likes a particular wine: this had something for everyone.  Dark, inky color.  Tobacco and stewed dark fruits on the nose, a hint of graphite.  In the mouth it had prune, blackberry, fig jam, clove.  It reminded me of Madeira, or the 2005 Ridge “Paso Robles” Zinfandel I had a few months ago.

Although this blend of 70% Monastrell, 20% Cabernet, 10% Syrah spends 22 months in oak (60% French, 40% American) and has a very dark, extracted color, it is not a Vaynerchukian “oak monster”: the tannins are there, but they’re silky and well-integrated.  Indeed, the Alma de Luzon’s acidity is more pronounced than its tannins.  Altogether, this is a tremendous value and a crowd-pleaser.  Buy it, drink it with a meal (I’m thinking red meats or molé, even), drink it with dark chocolate-covered blueberries, drink it by itself–whatever you do, be sure to buy it and drink it.

So, I’ve been at home for a week and a day and I’ve been able to try some wonderful wines.  I would recommend all of them.  With selection like this, how can I not love South Pasadena?

And of course, eating and drinking.

Added to the bottles thus far consumed during Snowmageddon are the two below:

The one on the left is a Riesling, the 2008 Selbach Riesling Spätlese ($14.99 from MacArthur Beverages).  I opened this for a dinner of mahi-mahi, wild rice, and roasted asparagus.  The mahi-mahi was pre-marinated, courtesy of Trader Joe’s, in a sweet-salty sauce, so I figured that the semi-sweet Spätlese would be a decent match.

According to Phil from MacArthur Beverages, this Riesling is made from grapes harvested from a vineyard in the Saar River Valley.  The vineyard itself is a secret; thus, the grapes are from a good vineyard but might not have been high-enough quality for a top producer’s top wine.  Whatever.  In the hands of a talented winemaker such grapes can gain new life (think of them as, um, halfway kids that end up becoming doctors and lawyers) and become a solid wine.  The Selbach was a very low 8% ABV (NICE!) and had a nose of honey and–strangely–clay.  This was relatively light-bodied, though the residual sugar gave it a hint of viscosity.  Lychee, lychee, lychee.  Very tart finish reminiscent of green apple or quince or some other pome.  I thought that the wine had a very strong entry but spent itself too quickly: the finish didn’t last very long at all.  Altogether not a bad wine–it didn’t end with that plasticine taste that plagues so many other lower-priced whites–and a favorite with the ladies who drank it (thanks, Rebecca, Megan, and Christine for your expert opinions!).

The next wine was awesome!  I have a not-so-secret love affair with Spanish wines and with the wines of R. Lopez de Heredia in particular.  Having had their 1999 “Viña Gravonia” crianza (a white wine made of 100% Viura) and 1999 “Viña Tondonia” reserva (a red made of 75% Tempranillo, 15% Garnacho, and 10% combined Mazuelo and Graciano) not too long ago, I had picked up a bottle of the 2004 “Viña Cubillo” crianza ($24.99/$20.99 on sale), a red made of 65% Tempranillo, 25% Garnacho, and 10% combined Mazuelo and Graciano) at MacArthur.

Being a crianza, the Viña Cubillo was released much earlier than the Viña Tondonia (compare 2004 with 1999–the 1999 Tondonia was released last year while the 2004 Cubillo was released this year); however, it still spent three years in barrel and another three in bottle before being released!

What an excellent wine!  Very light, clear in color, with a tremendous nose of bright berries, it positively exploded with flavor.  Think of a cross between juicy and savory and you get this wine.  Strawberry-rhubarb pie mixed with umeboshi?  Licorice and some herbs, too.  Tart and acidic, but with tannins waiting in the background to give the wine structure.  Lip-smacking wine, and easy, easy drinking.  I found this a more approachable wine than the Viña Tondonia.  One caveat, however: this wine seemed to fade in the glass after about half an hour.  Thus, I would open and drink this bottle straightaway and not keep it overnight.

Here’s what Lopez de Herdia had to say about this vintage of the Viña Cubillo:

Classified by The Regulating Council as excellent this 2004 has become one of the historic wines of Rioja. This harvest was not only good in quality but in quantity both in our own vineyards and in the whole D.O. Rioja.

Do yourself a favor and get a bottle of this wine.  It is excellent and everything a classical Rioja should be!

Such were the trees on the road on the way to Lexington, North Carolina, whose Barbecue Festival my friend James (of The Eaten Path fame), our friend Nick (of the US Patent and Trademark Office) and I attended this past weekend.

(Thank you to the Lexington BBQ Festival for this poster!)

For those of you who do not know of James by this point, he is one of my good friends from Berkeley who has for the last year called Brooklyn, New York home.  While his more regular contributions to the blogosphere can be seen on The Eaten Path, he also is a huge aficionado of all things barbecued, once spending a few weeks traveling through the Smoky Crescent and eating and observing the best the South had to offer.  It is one of his goals to publish a comprehensive and awesome book on barbecue–a noble goal, indeed.

Thus, when he said there was a barbecue festival in North Carolina I asked if I could go.  I figured I wouldn’t have very many more chances to have a purpose to go to North Carolina, and besides, any reason to get out of DC is reason enough.

James has an excellent post–with pictures!–about our journey, so I won’t try to recreate the wheel.  Suffice it to say that North Carolina BBQ is pork, sometimes cooked over wood, and either sliced or finely chopped, sometimes with the delicious crackling, and served in trays or sandwiches, usually with “red” (BBQ) cole slaw and hush puppies.  The sauce, which arrives sometimes infused in the meat or sometimes on the side, is vinegar-based, unlike the sauce in parts of South Carolina which is predominantly mustard-based.

Some other items of note: we saw a lumberjack contest with three separate events–the chainsaw, the traditional hand-ax, and–get this–the throwing ax!  The throwing ax was crazy.  One of the competitors was an 11-year-old girl.  Seeing her throw that double-bladed ax fifteen or so feet into the center of a banged-up wooden target made me feel sorry for the soldiers of the Union Army.  Another item of note was a series of races involving pigs, Vietnamese potbellied pigs, and billy goats.  Good ole’-fashioned fun if ever I’ve seen it!

(Thanks to James for this picture–note the 11-year-old girl in red and the ax, which you can see at top-center of the picture.)

Keeping with the theme of my blog, however, we did have a few wines, two of which we picked up at the beginning of our journey at a Whole Foods in Virginia:

2008 Borsao Viña Borgia garnacha: I bought a bottle of this for the low price of $6.99 because it has a cool, modern-looking label and is from the man, Jorge Ordoñez, a very well-known and respected importer of Spanish wines.  I’ve had a number of his wines before and they’ve all been great.  This particular one, however, was a wash for me.  It was relatively light and had a LOT of fruit.  I found the tannins to be a bit weak and the acid to be a bit, well, underwhelming.  This wine was unoffensive and still a decent deal for the price.  James and Nick liked it more, calling it “vibrant.”  I think other Ordoñez selections such as the Juan Gil (mourvedre), a powerful and expressive red wine, or the Botani (moscatel seco), a unique and refreshing white, are better examples of his portfolio.

2008 Trapiche malbec: from the Mendoza Valley of Argentina, it clocked in at a price of about $8.00.  James had previously had their pinot noir, which he liked.  This malbec was decent–nothing to write home about, and it didn’t really exude “malbec-ness” to me, but it was drinkable and pretty good with the barbecue from Lexington No. 1 BBQ.  And it was infinitely better than the wine we had opened for that particular meal, a wine that in retrospect showed all the warning signs of a horrible, horrible bottle.

This wine was the 2009 Childress Vineyards Fine Swine Wine, which was 40% syrah blended with cabernet franc and “residual sugar.”  A few things should have alerted me to the possibility that this was going to be bad.  First, the name…?  Granted, it was created specifically for the Lexington Barbecue Festival and for eating with BBQ (this was the second year in a row it was made), but really?  The label boasts a pig stomping grapes in a big wooden vat, which I suppose is another sign.  Also, it’s bottled with “residual sugar,” which isn’t necessarily bad in of itself but is probably going to be bad when the vintage is this year.

(Thanks to The Eaten Path for this great picture!)

James and I each purchased a bottle for $15 from a stand at the festival, where the owner/proprietor of Childress Vineyards, NASCAR driver Richard Childress, was signing bottles.  I was pretty excited–hey, it was a festival!  And hey, I like wine!

Ugh.

I mean, there are probably people who like it.  It did well enough last year that they made it again–500 cases of it–this year.  I’m assuming it probably sold out or is close to sold out.  But it’s just not good wine.  It tastes like jug wine: it’s thin, lacks any semblance of tannin and acid or structure, and is super sweet.  It tastes like Manischewitz, but at least Manischewitz is (1) fuller bodied, so you can fool yourself into thinking it’s almost a dessert wine, and is (2) Kosher.  I would much rather drink Manischewitz, Charles Shaw, or even Franzia.

The winery says it best itself.  Says winemaker Mark Friszolowski: “It’s like sweet tea with a kick.”  A very big, unpleasant kick.

Do not get this wine.  If you should find yourself at the Lexington BBQ Festival, spend the $15 on the delicious North Carolina-style BBQ pork sandwiches, or smoked turkey legs, or deep-fried apple pies, or funnel cakes, or anything else.

That bad wine experience aside, North Carolina was great.  There was so much good food and the trees and countryside were beautiful.  But this is where James and I differ, perhaps.  I like traveling, but at the end of the day, after 1000 miles and countless dirty bathrooms, it is nice to come back and sleep in one’s own bed.  James is still there in North Carolina (Nick and I dropped him off in Raleigh, where he spent a few nights couch surfing) doing more research for his book.  He revels in the journey, in the exploration and the paths–beaten, eaten, and otherwise.

Thus, I’ve been able to go to Mission Wines, my favorite local wine spot here in little South Pasadena. I rounded up a crew of the usuals–William, his friend Sam, Chris M. and his gf, Sasha and his gf, and Jack M. from days yore–and we hit up the wine tasting this past Saturday. Manning the bar were the always dependable Dave and Matthew; Kirk from the Rose Bowl committee was there along with a spate of regulars.

The tasting started off with a 2008 Pierre-Marie Chermette “Les Griottes” Beaujolais rosé, made from gamay.  A Beaujolais rosé?  I mean, much Beaujolais is darn close to rosé, anyway.  Nonetheless, this was a nice wine with a vibrant pink color and an austere, slightly coppery taste.  It wasn’t sweet and not overtly fruity.  It was my first Beaujolais rosé, so I was delighted to have it be a positive experience.  

We moved on to a real winner–the 2008 Jorge Ordonez Botani moscatel seco.  Botani is owned and operated by that magnate of Spanish wine, Jorge Ordonez, who also imports the excellent Vinicola Onix blend from Priorat and the intense, brooding Juan Gil.  Although the Botani vineyard usually produces sweet white wines made from the moscatel grape, the wine I tried on Saturday was off-dry, surprisingly viscous with a huge nose of very ripe muscat grapes.  (Have you ever had the Korean drink Sac Sac?  It’s grape juice in a can with whole peeled muscat grapes.  The Botani reminded me of that.)

The next was the Tantara T. Solomon Wellborn pinot noir from Santa Barbara, a multi-vintage pinot that I honestly found uninspiring and a little too… unfocused?  I was glad to move onto the 2007 Bistro Grenache from Epicurean, that Washington-based importer of fine Australian wines.  Apparently they have started to dabble in producing their own wines–so far, so good.  Sourced from vineyards in the McLaren Vale, this is a straightforward wine: dusky color, dusty plum full of umami, overlaid by a cloying sweetness.  I sensed some clove and, I don’t know why or how, some red lipstick–perhaps from the one or two women I’ve kissed in my day?  ;)  Pretty good, with a cool hip label:

We strayed off the tasting menu for a pour of a 2006 Essenza di Negroamaro from Italy.  This was a bit closed at first but opened up gradually in the glass–well-balanced tannins and a cedar box nose.  It sort of reminded me of a fruit rollup, but not in a bad way.

Ah–here was a great one–a truly unique wine.  After having tried it at Lou on Vine, I had been looking everywhere for a bottle of a Lacrima di Morro.  I wrote about it before, so I’ll just quote from my previous post:

Tears of Morro (Morro being the commune of Morro d’Alba in the Italian province of Ancona, which is on the Adriatic coast).

Lacrima di Morro is a wine whose grape (Lacrima di Morro d’Alba) is of an ancient and confusing origin–so ancient and so confusing, in fact, that its precise genealogy may never be determined.

This wine blew me away because it was like no other wine I’ve ever tasted. Sure, there are other wines whose nose may approximate flowers, but the Lacrima di Morro actually SMELLS like violets. It’s unmistakable. It’s incredible. And when you take a sip, those violets morph on your tongue into petals of rose. The aftertaste is evocative of rosewater–Turkish Delights, anyone? Light body, low-to-medium tannins, and medium acidity make for a playful, idiosyncratic wine.

I don’t remember the producer of that previous version, but this one was the 2007 Lacrima di Morro from Quercia Antica Velenosi.  The one I tried last week had the unmistakable violets on the nose, yes, but the first sniff actually reminded me more of fresh blueberry pie than violets.  Oh well, a wonderful wine–though not everyone’s favorite, just to be fair.

I scored a pour of the 2007 Domaine Alary “La Brunote” from Cairanne, France: primarily grenache, this was round with just enough tannins to keep things interesting.  I found it better than the Bistro Grenache from Australia, but at around $24 or so it was also about $10 more expensive.

We finished off with the 2007 Domaine les Grands Bois “Cuvee Gabrielle” Cotes-du-Rhone Villages, the last pour of the official tasting.  This one had pepper and herbs on the nose, a big entry rounding out to a smooth mouthfeel, raisins and the hint of spice.  Very good.

My favorite of the day?  I had a few actually, for different occasions.  The Botani would be a great summer white and probably popular with the ladies.  The Domaine Alary would be a great bottle for a cooler day–maybe in the autumn.  The Lacrima di Morro would edge out both, however, just for sheer idiosyncrasy.  It was extremely satisfying to finally find it; I bought a bottle for my friends to try and bought the last bottle at the store to bring home (my mom and sister loved it, by the way).  

Along with the Lacrima di Morro, I bought a bottle of the 2008 Le Bastide Blanche Bandol rosé and, to celebrate my new Riedel Burgundy glasses, I purchased a bottle of the 2007 Cristom “Mt. Jefferson Cuvee” pinot noir from the Willamette Valley of Oregon.  The Bandol was very VERY austere–dry and permeated with minerals–a pale rust color, and better the second day than the first (especially with some Moroccan-style quail and cous cous!).  The pinot was billed as more in the Burgundy style–it was more like a Burgundy than the pinots that so many Californians love, but still more on the opulent than restrained side.  It was good, but I’d still take the Kermit Lynch selection from Domaine A. Et. P. De Villaine any day.  And, in somewhat of an irony, the Burgundy is cheaper than the Oregon pinot!

Needless to say, I’ve had a lot of great wine lately, and a lot of great people to share it with.

The concrete reason for my trip was to visit two of my former residents (and current friends), Semra and Kana, and their awesome apartment up in the hills on North Side.  There was a sentimental reason, too–namely, that all of my residents and thus the vast majority of the people I knew in Berkeley would be graduating and leaving for the big vast world after college.  

There was a oenological reason, too: I wanted to drink a lot of great wine!

Again, as in my New York post, I’m going to just write down phrases that will hopefully serve to jog my memory when I’m looking back after a few decades.  =)

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Wednesday, May 13
Flight in to Oakland.  BART to Downtown Berkeley and up Euclid, right on Virginia.  Up up up Virginia.  Apartment.  Met up with Kana, went down to get lunch at Poulet. Realized they had only $5.00 corkage. Went to Andronico’s and got two bottles–a bottle of the Domaine E.C. (Emile Cheysson) “Clos les Farges” Chiroubles Beaujolais cru for lunch with our poultry, and a bottle of the 2000 Senorio de P. Pecina Rioja crianza for later.  A huge amount of delicious food at Poulet with a lightly-chilled bottle of the Chirouble (perfect!).  Some of the Rioja later with Kana and Semra at home. Wandering around seeing the sights.  An iced Americano at the Free Speech Movement Cafe. Met up with Stephanie with two of her friends outside the newly-created East Asian American Library on campus.  Fat Slice and La Burrito.  Home, more drinking of the Rioja.

Thursday, May 14
Unsuccessful run at both Gregoire and Vintage Berkeley (they both open at 11 am). Hung out with Aileen. A wonderful subsidized lunch of a pork tenderloin sandwich, fries, glass of Ampelos Rosé of Syrah, and citrus-infused panna cotta at Adagia. An iced Americano at Strada. Shopping with Semra and her awesome roommate Hilary at Andronico’s (for late-night snacks) and Kermit Lynch (for late-night drinking). Some more of the Rioja, which had developed into a very different wine–away from earth but more towards a mushroomy, old-wine sort of taste; not unpleasant but wholly unexpected.

Out to SF. A cappuccino at the SFMOMA cafe. Dinner with Dre at Osha Thai. Back to Berkeley. Back to Andronico’s for more ingredients. Cooked a series of three snacks. First, shrimp ceviche (cooked Bay shrimp with a salsa of tomato, avocado, cilantro, onion, serrano and jalepeno pepper, garlic, salt, and lime juice) and tortilla chips served with the 2008 Denis Jamain Reuilly pinot gris rosé–clean, crisp, and very very light, with just the hint of berries and minerals. Second, garlic shrimp (shrimp cooked in the shell with olive oil, garlic, salt, and crushed red pepper) served with the remainder of the rosé and some of the absolutely gorgeous 2007 Domaine A. Et. P. De Villaine “La Fortune” Cote Chalonnaise Bourgogne. Third, filet mignon rolls (filet mignon sliced thin, half a fingerling potato, a circle of leek, and goat cheese) served with the remainder of the Bourgogne and with some of the brooding, restrained, iron-fist-in-a-silk-glove that is the 2007 Clos la Coutales malbec from Cahors (I had been disappointed with this wine in DC, but I am happy to report that that bottle was a clear aberration). Drunk, drunk, drunk.

Friday, May 15
Hung out for a while at the apartment, then went to Nefeli Caffe for cappuccinos and a pizette with Semra and Hilary. My first time at North Berkeley Wine Imports. Browsing wines to the tune of the great Dark Was The Night album. Picked out some more bottles. Dropped off at Strada. More iced Americano. Dropped off my bags at my new place with Stephanie on Durant. Met with Kana at Strada again for another iced Americano, met a new Phi Delt (my old fraternity) who had been initiated long after I had graduated, found out from him that some Phis were at the Bear’s Lair. Went to Bear’s Lair. Met up with Patrick, Matt, Evan, and some new Phis and Jess B.; ran into my old residents Danny, Alicia, Jessica, and Catherine. Dinner at the I-House with Dana. Wine with Michael, Emma, Jed, Jose (the old Adagia crew) and Atsuko (who was hired long after me). First the 2007 Domaine Diochon Moulin-a-Vent “Vieilles Vignes” cuvee–nice fruit, impressive structure. A unique Ballantine petit verdot that opened up beautifully in the glass courtesy of Jed. Last, the 2005 Bodegas Monte De Reina Tinta de Toro Edicion Limitada from North Berkeley Wine Imports: lush, dark, with full body and nice tannins. Then Brian Martinelli, Teeny, and Chuck showed up; I hitched a ride in Brian’s Le Sabre to the Smokehouse, where I conquered the near-mythical double chili-cheese dog with a side of fries and a Coke (double as in two hot dogs in one bun).

Saturday, May 16
MacArthur BART station to meet up with Ratha. Lake Merritt. A cappuccino and eggs scrambled with lox, cream cheese, and chives at the Lakeshore Cafe. Through the Farmer’s Market. A walk around part of Lake Merritt. Visit to Ratha’s place. BART back to Berkeley. Picked up a whole bunch of books at Pegasus and Pendragon (including first editions of Near the Ocean by Robert Lowell and Praise by Robert Hass). An iced tea (for once) at the Free Speech Movement Cafe with Lauren. Dinner at Angeline’s with Jeff, who is going to the Philippines for his internship. A brief detour on Addison to see Semra one last time at her British friend Ben’s apartment. Some Becks on the roof. No wine all day. Home, and sleep.

Sunday, May 17
Packing for LA. Iced coffee at Peet’s with Stephanie. Brunch at La Note, consisting of a cup of coffee and the omelette de pommes de terre (open-faced potato and caramelized onion omelet) for me and the cote nord (eggs soft-scrambled with goat cheese over French bread) for Steph. Airport. LA.

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This trip was bittersweet, as always, but not for the usual reasons. This trip was bittersweet more for the fact that an era had passed, and that I’d have to stay in SF or Oakland the next time I went up to Berkeley. I certainly had more money during this last trip than I ever had while in college, and I had a great time, but some things can’t be bought and certainly cannot be reproduced: scraping together change for an Americano, grilling cheap frozen hamburger patties on a rickety old deck, holding hands while watching the sun set over the Bay.

Having lived in DC now since August, I feel like I have a sense of the city.  True, I haven’t really explored too much, but enough to realize a few things.  First, DC is a nice city–to visit.  Second, there are nice restaurants–in the $$$ range.  Third, there are some good cafes–if you’re willing to take the Metro and walk a while.  Fourth, there ARE some good wine shops, though the District of Columbia isn’t exactly the Bay Area.  I am pretty certain that I will be returning to California after law school.

I really do like certain aspects of DC.  I do like the cold weather, for instance, and the snow (although it can be a real pain when you’re trying to walk in slush and frozen ice).  I do like that you can generally get around using public transportation (traffic today in LA brought back some bad memories).  But, after all of this, and despite LA’s problems, LA is still home to me.

The temperature in DC when I left for Dulles was around 20 degrees; when I got to LA the temperature was 59 degrees.  It rained today in LA, a lot in the morning but tapering off in the early afternoon.  It was actually so nice during this respite from the rain that my parents and I decided to stop by the Farmer’s Market on 3rd and Fairfax.  Bob’s Donuts and coffee, a beef shawerma wrap from Moishe’s for me and fish ‘n’ chips and clam chowder for the ‘rents.  Awesome–relaxing and delicious.

Afterwards, I went to Mission Wines to say hello.  And left with six bottles of wine:

• 2007 Francois Chidaine | Touraine, Loire Valley, France | sauvignon blanc | $11.99
• 2007 Pascal Bellier | Cour-Cheverny, France | romorantin | $14.99
• 2007 Borsao “Tres Picos” | Campo de Borja, Spain | garnacha | $14.99 ($16.99 – $18.99 regular)
• 2007 Domaine les Grands Bois “Cuvee Maximilien | Cairanne, Cotes du Rhone villages, France | blend | $19.99
• 2005 Domaine de Piaugier “Sablet” | Cotes du Rhone villages, France | blend | $15.99
• 2007 Atalaya | Almansa, Spain | prim. monastrell, garnacha tintorera | $14.99

Though LA and DC are pretty dissimilar, I was still able to find one of my favorite “DC” wines at Mission Wines: “Tres Picos” from Borsao ($14.99 on sale, $16.99 regular price as compared to $18.99 in many DC locations).  This is 100% garnacha, grown from the Campo de Borja D.O.  Trey from The Wine Specialist recommended it to me and I am certainly glad he did: a powerful, expressive garnacha redolent with dark berries and leather.  I wasn’t really a fan of garnacha/grenache in general because I felt it made too much of a light and inconsequential wine, but man–Tres Picos knocked my socks off and those of the friends who tasted it.

This is my third bottle of Tres Picos–absolutely terrific and well worth the price.  It went really well with roquefort, in case you wanted to have it for a wine tasting.

The Francois Chidaine is hands-down my favorite sauvignon blanc–a must-have, especially for the upcoming spring and a steal at $11.99.  The Cour-Cheverny is also a white wine: the sales associate at Mission Wines raved about it and gave me a pour.  It had a nose like a big unoaked California chardonnay–tropical fruits–but was significantly dry and minerally, with a bit of pepper like a grüner veltliner.  I felt compelled to buy it.

Another wine I feel compelled to write about is one I had in DC: the 2005 Vacqueyras from Domaine La Roubine, a blend of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Mourvedre.  Vacqueyras is a lesser-known appellation in the southern Rhone–sort of a third fiddle to Chateauneuf-du-Pape and Gigondas.  This means, however, that wines from Vacqueyras are available for good prices (the Domaine La Roubine was $25.99).  I had earmarked the bottle to drink with a nice hanger steak I had purchased from Eastern Market.  I meant to cook the steak on Monday right after the journal competition but couldn’t wait that long to try the wine–I opened it and had a little bit late Sunday evening.  Really good, prunes and “stewed cherries” on the nose, pronounced tannins but lighter bodied than I thought it would be, more of an earthy-minerally character to it than fruity.  It was even better the next day with the steak.

Altogether, I’m pretty happy with the wines I’ve been able to try in DC and am looking forward to trying some more in LA.  Mind you–the six bottles aren’t all for me: ostensibly, I bought them for my mom who always tells me how neither my brother nor sister will buy her any wine!

And now I might very well be older than they were at the time.

(My torts professor summed it up quite nicely when he quipped, “It’s a strange feeling when both the president-elect AND the chief justice are younger than you are.”)

Now that I’m a quarter century old, I feel as if I should be an adult.  I certainly feel adult-like at certain moments–for instance, when I cook dinner, or when I go to the Ritz-Carlton for drinks (that one time!)–but sometimes feel as if I’m a child playing grownup. I think many of my peers feel the same way.

All that aside, it IS nice to get together and do grownup stuff–like hold wine tastings.  My roommate and I decided to throw a wine tasting; I decided also to throw a wine tasting before that wine tasting to get the feel of things.

I’ll spare you (and myself) the details of the parties.  The first coincided with the arrival of Margie’s friend Ruth from Michigan and Alisa’s friend Kami from Arizona.  The second coincided with Margie’s birthday.  All in all, fortuitous timing.

This was the first wine tasting event I hosted, so I was anxious to do it right.  To that extent, I went to the Wine Specialist and talked to J.C. (their Spanish wine buyer) for over an hour, picking out wines.  The combined wines over both tastings were:

• 2007 | Visión “Cono Sur” | Sauvignon Blanc | Casablanca Valley, Chile
• 2007 | Verget du Sud | Chardonnay | Vin de Pays du Vaucluse, France
• 2007 | Mulderbosch | Chenin Blanc | Stellenbosch, South Africa
• 2006 | André Lorentz | Riesling | Alsace, France
• 2007 | Jean Descombes | cru Beaujolais | Morgon, Beaujolais, France
• 2007 | Maipe “Rosé of Malbec” | Malbec | Mendoza, Argentina
• 2006 | Domiciano de Barrancas “Cosecha Nocturna” | Malbec | Mendoza, Argentina
• 2007 | Oracle of the Stars | Pinotage | Western Cape, South Africa
• 2007 | Thorn-Clarke “Shotfire” | Shiraz | Barossa Valley, Australia
• 2007 | Cueva de las Manos “Bonarda Old Vine Reserve” | Bonarda | Mendoza, Argentina

I bought a few repeats, as well.

There was also a Chilean cabernet sauvignon that I wasn’t intending to serve (and so didn’t write down) but ended up serving after the first tasting; we also went through a few other bottles from my own “collection” and from others.

The theme for both tastings was “1.5 Generation Wines: Between the Old and New Worlds.”  Many of the varietals–sauvignon blanc, syrah/shiraz, and malbec, especially–have had great success after being transplanted to different parts of the world.

The first tasting was a bit more improvised–I didn’t have any food to go along with the tasting, but we more than made up for that by drinking a lot of wine.  The second tasting was more planned–Alex and I made appetizers such as pork sausage fried with apples and cider, lox with chevre and green garlic on melba toast, roasted Hungarian peppers with Greek goat cheese on sliced baguette, hummus, dark chocolate drops with raspberry, etc.  Daphne brought some spicy tuna rolls and vegetable rolls, as well.  Delicious.

I won’t comment on all the wines, but only the notable ones.

The Visión “Cono Sur” is an excellent sauvignon blanc–midway between the Old World (minerals, concentrated) and the New World (lush, grassy) styles, this was a real crowd pleaser.  The Maipe “Rosé of Malbec” was an intense blood red, almost as dark as the Beaujolais or a pinot noir.  It had a bit of a rubber boot nose, but this gave way to some nice berry fruit that ended on dried notes of raisin.  The Oracle of the Stars pinotage was a favorite–smoky, nice acid–and a steal at $7.99.  It’s definitely a wine I’d keep around for dinner or easy drinking.

Jordan and Margie donated a bottle of 2005 Bodegas Arrocal tempranillo from the Ribera del Duero region of Spain.  We poured it in a decanter and swished it around.  I happen to love tempranillo from Ribera del Duero (Tinto Pesquera, anyone?)–they’re intense and dark, with earth and tobacco.  “This is going to be evocative of a dry, dusty riverbed,” I announced drunkenly as I poured out tastes from the decanter.  Yup.  It WAS like a dry, dusty riverbed.

Overall, I really enjoyed the process of hosting a wine tasting, and people seemed to like it.  Then again, who wouldn’t like to pretend they’re adults and get drunk off of good wine?