Unexpected Napa Valley Wines On Social Media

The Napa Valley Vintners Association teamed up with The Daily Sip and the Sip’s editor-in-chief Karen MacNeil for a virtual wine tasting event which featured a sextet of “Unexpected Napa Wines.” What, exactly, are unexpected Napa wines? @TheDailySip tweeted the answer during the event. “We looked for classic estates making unexpected wines,” they chirped. “The #Napa Valley is a hotbed of American innovation,” they continued. “Traditions thrive and evolve while winemakers explore the new.”

The six wines tasted ranged from a mildly unexpected unoaked Chardonnay to quite unexpected California Albarino, Chenin Blanc and Petit Verdot to Fumé Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon - which I would say are far from unexpected in Napa Valley.

The #SipWithKaren wines:

• Alpha Omega 2013 Unoaked Chardonnay
• Artesa 2014 Albarino.
• Cornerstone Cellars 2013 Chenin Blanc
• Robert Mondavi Winery 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon
• Robert Mondavi Winery 2013 Fume Blanc
• St. Supery 2010 Dollarhide Petit Verdot

I was invited to join this party and was provided samples of the wines for that purpose. I will cover them separately here in the coming weeks on Now And Zin Wine.

Alpha Omega 2013 Unoaked Chardonnay

Robin Baggett founded San Luis Obispo producer Tolosa Winery in 1997, and moved to Napa Valley in 2006 with his wife to found Alpha Omega. He has been a grape grower for years and now dabbles in cattle, too. Alpha Omega winemaker Jean Hoefliger is Swiss. His wine education took him from the Alps to Bordeaux and South Africa before landing in Napa. Michel Rolland is the consulting winemaker.

The Alpha Omega Chardonnay Unoaked Napa Valley 2013 prompted plenty of early comment on twitter during the first part of the tasting session. @TheAlcoholProf liked that the wine is "pleasantly acidic with caramel apple & citrus." Our fearless leader, @KMacWine, tweeted, "I like the Unoaked #Chardonnay a lot. It’s a wine that’s effortless to drink all day long." @DrinkWhatULike thought the wine "brings it with texture! Pear and baked apple for days." @timlemke Typed that "Unoaked Chardonnay is not unexpected to me. I expect to see more in the future, because it's awesome." He's right, too. @FeelingDuckie messaged "Must be #summer! All I can think about when I smell this #chardonnay are lemon-lime popsicles." Do I hear the good humor man's music? @TheDailySip cited "Ripe banana, yellow apple, cantaloupe, and a savory touch of squash blossom." On the unoaked aspect, @myvinespot said, "I'm totally expecting to see "Tree Free" on a wine label now instead of un-oaked, naked, or stainless."

The light yellow tint of the Alpha Omega '13 Unoaked Chardonnay foretells the nose of apples and apricots with a touch of Meyer lemon. There is lemon and tangerine on the palate with just a hint of dark earthiness. An excellent acidity and a crisp clean finish carries the fruit a long way. More than simply "clean" or "refreshing," which the wine is, this is a rather complex white that calls for a bit time to ruminate on its attributes.


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Summer Wine: Napa Rosé That Is Made To Be Rosé

Cornerstone Cellars makes a rosé wine that is intended to be a rosé from the moment the grapevines experience bud break in the spring. Rosé wines are sometimes produced as a by-product of red wine. Need a little color concentration on that Syrah? Bleed off some of the lightly-colored juice and use the remaining deeply-hued skins to beef it up. What about that leftover juice?  “Oh, look, we made a rosé!”

That’s not how they do it at Cornerstone. Managing partner Craig Camp writes that their Corallina Syrah Rosé 2014 is “Napa Valley rosé with a purpose.” He says Corallina is made “as mindfully as we make any other wine,” and he says the 2014 vintage is “our most delicious Corallina yet.”

The Syrah grapes for Corallina are grown in Crane Vineyard, in Napa Valley’s Oak Knoll AVA. They are pressed whole-cluster, fermented in stainless steel tanks and aged for five months in French oak barrels. About 500 cases of Corallina Syrah Rosé are produced each harvest. This year’s wine is vinified completely dry at 13.8% alcohol and it retails for $25.

Corallina's beautiful coral color is striking enough, but wait until you get a whiff. The fragrance of peaches is almost overwhelming. Then come the cantaloupe and watermelon aromas. This isn't just great with a picnic, it is a picnic. On the palate, strawberries and cherries mix with a fresh herbal flavor. Orange peel persists into the finish. It has great weight and acidity to spare. Good, serious fun here.

Corallina is in Cornerstone’s “Wine Dance” series, and features the beautiful label art by Janet Ekholm.


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A Pair Of Cigares

It is sometimes remarkable to taste the same wine from different vintages back to back. In the case of Bonny Doon Vineyards’ Le Cigare Volant red Rhône blend, the differences are striking. Not only does the growing season show itself, but the actual blend varies from year to year, making for a wine that is not only a delight, but also a surprise.

Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant 2010 Unfiltered

This flagship wine from the land of Bonny Doon is a Rhônish blend: 28% Syrah, 22% Grenache, 17% Cinsault, 17% Mourvèdre and 16% Carignane. The grapes were picked from a wide assortment of great Central Coast sites: Bien Nacido Vineyard (27%), Evangelho Vineyard (23%), Alta Loma Vineyard (17%), Bechtold Vineyard (16%), Gonsalves Vineyard (9%), Ca’ del Solo Vineyard (5%), Alamo Creek Vineyard (2%) and Enea Vineyard (1%).

There is nothing wrong with enjoying Le Cigare Volant right now - it’s hard to resist - but it is billed as a wine that will age gracefully for ten to fifteen years from release, which was in February, 2014. Alcohol is a very reasonable 13.3% abv, 1,344 cases were produced and it sells for $45 per bottle.

 A beautiful purple tint looks great in the glass. It is wonderfully fragrant with cherry tart and a touch of spice, a little light clove. A hint of earth peeks through, but in an elegant way - not rustic. On the palate, black pepper meets blackberry. The mouthfeel is quite full and juicy, and earth notes last well into the lengthy finish. There is a sense of dirt, but it's elegant dirt. Cigare’s acidity is refreshing and its tannins are brawny enough for beef,but its flavors are pretty enough for pork.

Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant 2011 Normale

The 2011 Cigare is a different mix of grapes: 37% Mourvèdre, 34% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 9% Cinsault. The Carignane did not make it into this bottle. The vineyard selections are a bit different, too. Again, eight vineyards contribute fruit, with the addition of Ventana, Del Barba and Rancho Solo vineyards joining Evangelho, Bien Nacido, Alamo Creek, Bechtold and Gonsalves.

"This is a wine from an extremely cool and elegant vintage,” winemaker Randall Grahm notes, and he figures this 2011 Cigare will age gracefully for ten to 15 years from right now. Alcohol is almost a full point higher, 14.2% abv, and the bottle retails for $45.

The nose is full of red berries, with a dark flair. Raspberry, cherry, and red currant are met with Grahm’s signature savoriness of roasted meat, beef jerky and black olive tapenade. The sip reveals that the ‘11 Cigare is a festival of darkness. The savory aspects come forward in a rush. The forest floor, the olive, the spice - all are cloaked in a dark fruit setting. Black plums, currant and berries work hard to mesh with the wine's earthy character. The acidity is remarkable and the tannic structure is firm.


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Two 2011 Napa Cabs From Cornerstone Cellars

Napa Valley is one of the great wine regions for Cabernet Sauvignon, but even great wine regions sometimes have disappointing vintages.  The 2011 vintage was just such a vintage for most Napa Valley winemakers. Wine Spectator said Napa grapes couldn’t catch a break in 2011, "from a cold, wet spring, a late fruit set, a mild summer and a harvest that dragged on into November, bedeviled by rain and rot." They even quoted one winemaker as saying "It was a horrible year for Napa Cabernet." But, not so fast, king-of-grapes breath. It has also been said, "You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows."

Craig Camp, managing director of Napa’s Cornerstone Cellars, knows a thing or two about Cab. He says a cool vintage is a blessing, not a curse. "To say that I have a chip on my shoulder about the 2011 vintage in the Napa Valley would be an understatement," Camp writes in an email. "Anyone who has spent any time in the vineyards of Europe can only be amused by the moaning about what a challenge this vintage was."  Camp feels that challenges are a part of agriculture, but as far as the wines go, "the wines that underwhelm you from this vintage are due more to decisions made by winemakers, not due to the weather."

Most folks have it backwards, Camp writes. "The problems climate presents to winegrowers in Napa are those of over-ripeness, sugars that mature ahead of flavors and lack of acidity. In truth, the hot vintages are the problem vintages in Napa, not the cooler ones. The producers that had the most problems in 2011 are those seeking to make the biggest, most powerful wines possible."

The Cornerstone approach is to shoot for a style of wine driven more by acidity than ripeness or alcohol. That’s why Camp is not singing the blues about 2011. "We were more than able to work with the natural ripeness grudgingly given us by Mother Nature," he continues. "We are very pleased with our 2011 wines and love their balance, freshness and length. That length is ... something that just does not exist without great acidity. Camp cites their '11 Cabs as being varietally correct. "They actually taste like the variety from which they are made. That means our cabernet has that bit of an herbal edge that makes the variety so compelling to me and so amazing with food."

Cornerstone Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2011

The 2011 Cornerstone Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is made up of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon grapes taken from Kairos Vineyard, Oak Knoll District, Oakville Station, and Ink Grade Vineyard on Howell Mountain with a 12% contribution of Merlot from Oakville Station.

The grapes were harvested throughout October of 2011. Aging took place over 22 months in French oak barrels, 65% new oak. Alcohol rings up at 14.3% abv and the bottle sells for $65.

The various sites from which the grapes were picked are like a Who's Who (What's What?) list of great Napa locales. Cornerstone gets this fruit regularly, and there is a reason for that. The quality exhibited in these grapes is noteworthy, and the folks at the winery took note.

This wine is dark and delicious. Opaque and deep burgundy, the nose brings an elegant package of cassis, graphite and smoke. The flavors are juicy and ripe, with blackberry and currant serving as a framework for the great oak effect. There are spices galore - cinnamon, nutmeg, black pepper, anise, sage and even a hint of bell pepper. It's not a vegetal wine by a long shot, though. The richness and depth of the aromas and flavors are what I expect from a first-class Napa Valley Cab.

Cornerstone Cellars Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon, White Label 2011

Camp explains why the Howell Mountain fruit is so desirable: "The vineyards of the Howell Mountain AVA are well above the fog line meaning many extra hours of sunshine, which paid off big time in the cooler 2011 vintage. In fact, I believe the wines from this AVA really benefited from the milder weather, which helped restrain the aggressive mountain tannins."

Camp feels their Howell Mountain Cab has great Cabernet structure, should be getting just about perfect in five to seven years and can be expected to develop for decades beyond. This wine hits 14.5% abv in alcohol and sells for $80 retail.

The nose on this Napa Cab is beautiful, and that's an understatement. It starts out bright and perky, darkening with time into a brooding bad boy. The cassis, blackberry and anise aromas develop a tarry sensation that means business. The flavor profile sharpens its focus, too. The red currant and plum turn black and the lighthearted cherry takes on an earthy, licorice note. The tannins are firm but forgiving, and the finish is long.

If the price tag means it's a "splurge wine" for your budget, let the splurging begin.



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Dry Creek Valley Wine Makes A Social Media Splash

Three fabulous examples of Dry Creek Valley Sauvignon Blanc were tasted, talked about and tweeted up during a virtual wine tasting event. The crowd gathered around a Google Hangout video broadcast on YouTube, while Twitter tasters tweeted about the trio 'til their thumbs tired. Here is the video of the tasting, as it appeared on YouTube.

Michelle McCue of McCue Communications moderated the vidcast and led those responsible for the wines in a power hour of lively conversation about what makes Dry Creek Valley good for Sauvignon Blanc. Winemakers Ed Sbragia, Emmett Reed and Tim Bell provided the answers to questions asked by the social media participants. The Twitter event is hashtagged at #DCVSauvBlanc.

Comments were positive from the beginning, with @PalateXPosure commenting on the Sauvignon Blanc wines that were the topic of the event, “the three clearly elevate what can be achieved w/SB.” @KatieEigel agreed that “These wines were all fantastic!” @wineandgoodfood tweeted that there is more than freshness to the variety, typing “A well-made Sauvignon Blanc can indeed age well!” @martindredmond loves SB “because it is the answer to many food pairing challenges like asparagus. Getting hungry! Anyone else like Sauv Blanc with guacamole?”  He must have been starving, as he also turned his thoughts to “raw oysters, scallops and crab!”

Sbragia Home Ranch Sauvignon Blanc 2014 Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County

The Sbragia estate 13-acre Home Ranch Vineyard was planted in 1995, so the Sauv Blanc vines are now really coming into their own. The grapes - all Sauvignon Blanc - were picked nine days into September. They are typically the first of the season to be harvested and made into wine at Sbragia, so the Sauvignon Blanc really sets the tone for everything else they do.

This white is 100% stainless steel fermented, hits 13.7% abv and retails for $22. Only 200 cases were produced.

This wine has a lovely golden tint - it looks inviting. A whiff shows a beautiful grassy note - a little more than I expect in California Sauvignon Blanc, but not full-bore grassiness like the New Zealand style. Apples and pineapples follow quickly. The palate displays gorgeous green apple, a twist of lemon-lime and a quarry of minerality. Ripping acidity screams for shellfish or crustaceans.

@foodwinechickie noted the price: “Such a great value at $22/bottle.” She also liked the “citrus notes with hints of grassiness” in the wine. @amylieberfarb agreed with me that “Oysters would be perfect” for this one. Amy also liked the “tropical fruit on nose & palate.” @JamesTheWineGuy wrote of the wine’s “orange/golden citrus zest, hint of ginger, flowers & seashells.” From @PalateXPosure: “I may have found my top summer #wine MUST HAVE. STUNNING effort. Can't believe only 200 cases made. Can I have them all?” @WineCompass sang the praise of the “lemon-honeysuckle aroma, creamy middle & acids galore,” while @martindredmond enjoyed the “wonderful acid w/ lovely grapefruit, passionfruit and lemongrass character.”

Gustafson Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2013 Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley

Harvested on September 10th from Gustafson’s ​Old Sheep Barn Block, these grapes are a field blend of 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Sauvignon Musque. The wine was fermented in stainless steel and aged in French oak, one-fifth of it new. 350 cases were produced and alcohol clicks in at 14.1% abv. The retail price is $22.

Gustafson cites the 2013 vintage as a good one overall in California, but particularly good for them in Dry Creek Valley. The long, dry and mild season meant less water for the vines, but they say the Sheep Barn Block produced “unprecedented growth despite the lack of water.”

They harvested the Sauvignon Blanc during the first week of September and did whole-cluster pressing of the grapes to include the stems and all.Steel fermentation was followed by French oak aging, then finished again in steel.

The yellow-gold tint is cheery and bright, while the nose is a bit funky, with white peaches and a waxy sensation. That wax carries onto the palate and meets a savory note on arrival. The acidity is superb and the finish lingers long with stone fruit the last to leave.

@JamesTheWineGuy liked the Gustafson’s “Comice Pear, Adriatic fig, hint of cinnamon and cashew.” @martindredmond was “Digging the stonefruit, tropical, melon grassy character. Great texture too!”  @dallaswinechick checked in with, “Green melon, peach, nice acidity and a touch creamy.” @winecompass said, “Not your typical Sauvignon Blanc, floral and spicy.”

Dry Creek Vineyard 2013 DCV3 estate Sauvignon Blanc Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley

From Dry Creek Vineyard’s single-vineyard series, the 2013 DCV3 Estate Sauvignon Blanc uses Sauvignon Musqué grapes that were picked starting in late August. DCV3, they say, is the original Sauvignon Blanc vineyard in Dry Creek Valley. Alcohol is ripe at 14.1% abv and 417 cases were made. The bottles sell for $25.

Pale color matches the delicate nose in this wine, with minerals and citrus wonderfully underplayed. On the palate, minerality rides herd over peaches and apples. Very pronounced acidity makes a wonderful food pair, while a medium-full mouth has decent weight. Meyer lemon graces the finish with a zing.

@JamesTheWineGuy tasted “Meyer lemon pulp, moist stones, white flowers, sunflower seeds,” while @foodwinechickie loved the wine’s “great acidity, refreshing finish,” and “Freshly-cut grass and bright citrus flavors. Medium bodied and not very California-like.” @PalateXPosure got “gorgeous citrus,lemon blossom,exotic fruit,” while @martindredmond called the wine “aromatic with a stone fruit, citrus & pineapple character. Nice minerality. Gorgeous texture.” @amylieberfarb commented, “Citrus, creamy w/ spice on long finish.” @DallasWineChick tweeted, “bursting with melon, tropical fruit and citrus with a minerality. A great food pairing wine.”


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Lodi Wine: St. Amant Winery Tools Of The Trade Barbera

A recent social media virtual tasting event hosted by Lodi Winegrowers featured a wine from St. Amant Winery that was made from grapes which originated in Italy. The Barbera grapes grow in a 42-year-old vineyard farmed by Ted Levventini. The vineyard is certified green by Lodi Rules.

The St. Amant Tools of the Trade Barbera 2013 is colored a medium dark ruby that really looks gorgeous in the glass. The nose gives black cherry and licorice aromas with just the faintest hint of a campfire or a fireplace burning. Very lively on the palate, it tastes of cherry and red currant in a very fun manner. There is a hint of red vine licorice and ripe, red plums. The mouthfeel is full, the acidity is striking and the tannic structure is firm, but not beastly. Great for steak, I'm sure, but I would love it with a pork chop. We found some Lodi cherries at Whole Foods, and they were a pretty good match, too.

Enough of what I think. What did the wine lovers on Twitter say? @50StatesOfWine agreed with an opinion expressed by @Cellarmistress: "The Barbera is pruny, smokey and reminds me of bacon wrapped dates. Yum!" @Wine Harlots noted that, "The @stamantwine Barbera is fantastic. And at $18 it's terrific value." It was @NormalWine who tweeted, "Barbera from #Lodi is highly aromatic -- brandied cherry, dried strawberry. Rustic smelling in a good way. Impressive!" @myvinespot called it, "fragrant w/ fresh, sweet red fruit character, streamlined, harmonious in mouth, good length. Appealing."

The price struck a nerve with @AmyCGross, who asked, "how in the WORLD is that St Amant #Barbera only $18?! GORGEOUS! Smooth AND Spicy!" @JamesTheWineGuy worked his senses overtime, "love the label and the contents!" While @gonzogastronomy was smitten. "The Barbera stole my heart tonight."


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Charity Wine: Paws For A Cause

Baron Cooper is a rescued Manchester Terrier adopted by the Habashi family from their local Humane Society. "He had been a part of a prisoner rehabilitation program that left him with serious behavioral issues," the Habashis explain onn the website, "and as a result, he also had difficulty trusting strangers - especially men. Today we are working our hardest to help Cooper forget his past and enjoy his new life.  Slowly, he's regaining the happy-go-lucky and playful attitude he was meant to have."

Baron Cooper Wines - the wine label bearing his name and likeness - is intended to “raise awareness to the plight of all shelter animals in need of new and loving families,” according to the label. It goes on, “The Baron Cooper wine brand is dedicated to Cooper and to all pets in shelters across the country.” The company raises more than just awareness, too. They raise money for the cause. Five percent of all the sales of Baron Cooper wines will be donated to the Best Friends Animal Society focused on saving the lives of animals in America’s shelters.

The Baron Cooper line offers a Sauvignon Blanc, a Chardonnay, a Cab and a red blend which are labelled with nothing more specific than “California” for point of origin. The line also includes a Sonoma County Pinot Noir and a single-vineyard old-vine Zinfandel from Lodi.

Baron Cooper 2012 Chardonnay, California

This white wine is made from 97% Chardonnay and 3% other white varieties, which are unnamed in the supporting material I could find. An alcohol level of 12.8% abv is quite reasonable. The wine sells for $16.

There is a nice golden hue and a nose containing the scent of apples, tropical fruit and a gentle kiss of oak. The palate has oak spice coming on much stronger in the flavor profile - even more so as it opens up. The apple is joined by apricot, lime and a little orange zest. Lip-smacking, juicy acidity makes food pairing easy. The lime stretches into the finish

Baron Cooper 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon, California

Usually I am not too crazy about Cabernet showing nothing more than California as the AVA. More specific information is required for me to take a bottle from the shelf. This one - sent to me as a sample for review - is not something which I anxiously awaited. The wine carries alcohol at a reasonable 13.6% abv clip and retails for $20.

It's a medium-dark wine with aromas of dark berry and black cherry. The oak spice is sweet and light. Flavors of blackberry and plum are met by good tannins that lay low and don't get in the way of the sip. While it’s probably not making any top ten lists, the wine really is pretty decent. It doesn't have Napa Valley worried, but if you were to spend $20 on a Cabernet you could do a lot worse. I'd actually like this chilled at a summer BBQ.


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Lodi Wine: Oak Farm Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc

Oak Farm Vineyards is a beautiful property just a short drive from downtown Lodi. As the name suggests, they are known for their many huge oak trees, but the 60-acre estate features grapevines, too. Varietals grown on the property include Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Verdelho, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Primitivo, Petite Sirah, Petite Verdot, Sangiovese and Barbera.

The grapes for the Oak Farm Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc 2014 come from Mohr-Fry Ranches - a Certified Green/Lodi RulesVineyard. The wine is made from 100% Lodi vineyard-designate grapes. Alcohol hits only 13.5% abv and it's all vinified in stainless steel tanks. Only 229 cases were made.

Oak Farms uses the same clone of Sauvignon Blanc grape  that put New Zealand on the map, but they point out that, "Lodi produces a more citrusy style. Our wine still has hints of grassiness, without being too herbaceous."  The grapes were whole-cluster pressed, which adds a bit to the herbal angle.

During a virtual tasting event on Twitter, @Lodi_Wine tweeted that "Chad Joseph is the winemaker at @OakFarmVineyard. He's pretty much a genius in the cellar." I'll go along with that. @NormalWine said this wine is a "nice Sauv Blanc. Very mild and lemony. Super summer sipper! Figgy with zing!" Figs and zing are both good in my book.

The nose features citrus, with minerals and a very slight grassy component. On the palate,  I find delightful acidity and great fruit, featuring tangerine, lemon and lime zest. The sip finishes clean and brisk. For the cheese pairing that was a part of the virtual event, @Luscious-Lushes noted that "Humbolt Fog is my spirit animal." Couldn't agree more.


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Lodi Wine Takes To Twitter, Brings Cheese

The wine community in Lodi, California really has a handle on how to get the word out about their grapes and wines. The series of virtual tasting events - based on Twitter, with a separate live video feed - are always well attended and and overflowing with great information about the region and its winegrowers.

It’s no surprise that the Lodites - Loditians? - have quickly mastered a social media art form that is rather new to them. They have had the farming thing figured out for generations. When they decided to start making their own wines instead of trucking the fruit of their labor down the road to be made by others, they hit the learning curve on the high side.

The periodic virtual get-togethers are a great way to showcase their wines and display publicly all the nice things that tasters have to say about them.  The most recent event featured four wines, two white and two red. The twist this time was a cheese pairing component, with select cheeses matched up with the wines. Here are the participating wineries and cheeses:

Acquiesce Winery & Vineyards 2014 Picpoul Blanc ($24.00) 

paired with Cypress Grove Midnight Moon, Arcata, CA

Oak Farm Vineyards 2014 Sauvignon Blanc ($19.00) 

paired with Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog® Grande, Arcata, CA

St. Amant Winery 2013 Barbera ($18.00) 

paired with Fiscalini Farms San Joaquin Gold, Modesto, CA

Michael David Winery 2012 Tannat ($35.00) 

paired with Central Coast Creamery Seascape Paso Robles, CA

The tasting session was hosted by Stuart Spencer, owner and winemaker at St. Amant Winery and Program Manager at Lodi Winegrape Commission, who was joined by Cindy Della Monica, owner & cheesemonger at Cheese Central.

The wines on the list are are sustainably grown in adherence to the Lodi Rules™ for Sustainable Winegrowing - California’s first third party certified sustainable winegrowing program, which was launched in 2005. The cheeses are eco-friendly, too.

As described online, “Lodi Rules™ takes a comprehensive approach to farming that goes beyond just pest management to promote practices that enhance biodiversity, water and air quality, soil health, and employee and community well-being.” The program includes more than 85 farming operations, and 20,000 acres of Lodi vineyards have been certified.

“For a wine to bear the Lodi Rules™ seal of approval, its composition must be made up of at least 85% of fruit which has been sourced from a vineyard certified under the Lodi Rules™ program, meaning that the vineyard has passed an independent, peer reviewed audit of 101 farming practice standards which have been accredited by Protected Harvest, a non-profit organization of scientists, academics and environmentalists. Over twenty wineries now produce wines that bear the Lodi Rules™ seal on the label.”

Located at the base of the Sierra Nevada Mountain range, Lodi is about 100 miles east of San Francisco and 35 miles south of Sacramento. It has been a major winegrowing region since the 1850’s, and now home to over 100,000 acres of premium vineyards farmed by more than 750 growers.  

Watch this space for details on some of the individual wines included in this virtual tasting.


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A Moniker By Any Other Name: Mark Beaman, Winemaker

Does the name Mark Beaman ring a bell? When I was approached about joining the winemaker bearing that moniker for dinner, I thought there was something familiar about the name. It took a little digging - just a little - to find out why.

The publicist insisted that “you may not know winemaker Mark Beaman, but you likely know his wines,” and that turned out to be the case. Beaman is assistant winemaker for Parducci Wine Cellars, but that was not the memory nerve that was struck. Fifty Shades of Gray Wine wasn’t it either. Ah, Wines That Rock! That’s it! The wines that serve as a liquid tribute band for the likes of the Rolling Stones, Grateful Dead and Woodstock - Mark Beaman is the winemaker who rocked those Mendocino County grapes into the bottle.

The wines Beaman was at dinner to pour - and pour - were those bearing the Moniker label. These wines - sourced exclusively from Mendocino County - pay tribute to the three generations of the Thornhill family, Beaman’s employers. Beaman liked the Thornhills so much, he married one of them. “I had the job first,” he is quick to point out, “then I met my wonderful wife.”

Beaman was raised in a farming family in Washington state and kept the dirt under his fingernails with a stint as a soil conservation expert in the Peace Corps. Oddly, it was during that time in East Africa that Beaman became interested in winemaking. He saw the fermentation process there as the locals made mead, honey wine. He got his feet purple at Washington’s Columbia Crest winery before moving to Mendocino.

Beaman loves making Moniker wines in Mendocino County. “It was my desire to work for a small family winery, and I like that the Thornhills are very progressive in their farming practices and committed to crafting the highest-quality wines possible.” He particularly likes the varietal choice that is possible due to Mendocino’s microclimates and - of course - the soil types.

Beaman opened his dinner comments at the bar, noting that in Chardonnay, oak is like a painting frame. "If you notice it, it is too gaudy. It should serve as a framework. It should accent, not dominate."

He points out that Mendocino Wine Company - the parent company of Moniker Wines - is the oldest winery in Mendocino County, founded in 1932. He feels that Mendocino County's problem has been marketing, not growing or winemaking.

He is doing what he can to get the word out about what a great wine growing region is found in the county. How did he end up there, instead of at a more established winery? He wanted the opportunity "to experiment and be part of something being built in the present day." Beaman also was attracted by the"incredible diversity of grapes grown in Mendocino County."

His Moniker Chardonnay shows great fruit and bright acidity, which he attributes to the diurnal shift - the differential of warm and cool temperatures achieved in the county during the growing season. Notes of Asian pear and spice are joined by a great touch of oak. The fruit is gorgeous, absolutely beautiful. This Chardonnay is elegant, not oaky or steely. A 4% hit of Viognier adds floral aromas as it warms. Beaman says the presence of the Viognier gives a "second life to the wine."

"I'm not about the winemaker tricks and what I can do," he says. "I'm about the growers and capturing what they do and bottling it."

For red wines, Moniker employs redwood tanks - huge ones. The redwood tanks are over 100 years old and Beaman says the redwood "does not impart flavor to the wine, even when new. It does smooth the tannins quite a bit, though."

The Moniker Pinot Noir has a lovely, graceful, raspberry nose with gentle notes of tea and coffee. The palate is very rich, with red berry, cherry and black tea. Very gentle tannins make for a smooth sipping experience.

According to Beaman, the wine gives a "nod to Burgundy, but it's definitely a California Pinot because it has to through a lot of yoga poses before it's just right. It needs aeration to get it past its assertive phase."

Of the Moniker Cabernet Sauvignon, Beaman says it's a "cerebral, fireside wine," although it is great with food, too. Notes of gunpowder and mint are immediately obvious, while the "olive tapenade will come out," he says. Beaman says he really likes that he didn't mention blackberry or currant in the flavor profile. He is obviously proud to present a Cabernet that elbows its way past the usual descriptors and delivers something a little deeper.

The Moniker Wines are something on which Beaman can be very proud to place his own moniker.


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Happy Canyon Cabernet: Dascomb Cellars

Dascomb Cellars Patriarch Don Dascomb bought the estate vineyard in 1974, starting a family business which sold their fruit to other winemakers. By the end of the 1990s, many Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards in Santa Barbara County had been ripped out in favor of varieties that have proven quite successful for growers in the SBC - Syrah, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Dascomb felt that Cab's time in the county was not over. He maintained his planting of the King of Grapes in what is now the Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara County AVA - a place where Cabernet Sauvignon thrives due to the conditions which are considerably warmer than the land to the west, which is closer to the marine influence.

According to the Dascomb website, winemaker Dave Dascomb - the younger generation - believes that he is simply building upon what nature has produced. "Mother Nature determines if a particular vintage will be good or not," he is quoted. "My responsibility is to make it exceptional!" The blurb continues that, "Exceptional wine is achieved through established farming practices, patience at harvest, old-world cellar practices and a passion for the art of winemaking!"

The grapes for this wine came from East Valley Vineyard, planted by the Dascomb family forty years ago, making it one of the oldest vineyards in the region. Alcohol hits 14.5% abv and it retails for $34. Considering the price point, it over-performs. I received a sample for the purpose of this article.

This Happy Canyon Cab certainly made me happy. Inky black in the glass, I like it already. Ripe nose of dark berries and graphite, you bet. Mouth full of blackberries and currants, yep. Amazing tannic structure, you had me at inky black. And, you get that fabulous acidity thrown in at no extra cost.

I paired mine with tri-tip straight from my grill, and it fit like it was on special order. I imagine it will serve equally well with a ribeye or a bacon-wrapped pork loin. Oh, sorry, I drifted off into my barbecue fantasy place for a second. Pair it with any meat dish that’s not really spicy and you’ll have a good time.


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Who Do You Have To Know To Get A Proper Claret Around Here?

Reginald ffrench-Postalthwaite is billed as the alter ego of the beloved, quixotic, notorious Bonny Doon winemaker Randall Grahm. His flowery prose graces the back label of the 2013 A Proper Claret, and his missive to me, accompanying a sample of the wine, is similarly evocative and properly footnoted. It may well be the only wine label in existence with footnotes.

On the label, ffrench-Postalthwaite wonders aloud - albeit in print - what one has to do to "be served a glass of Proper Claret around here?" Claret is the generic British term used for wines of Bordeaux. There may have been a jab directed at France by the word, which formerly meant something of light color. The wines of Bordeaux once actually were of light color, but that was quite a while before they stormed the Bastille.

The pejorative stuck, as did the use of the phrase "the French disease" to describe syphilis. It may or may not be true that the French fought back on that one, calling syphilis "the English disease." They also got in a shot of their own by recognizing the American colonies as independent of Great Britain, while not recognizing the wine of England as anything at all.

But, as ffrench-Postalthwaite might annotate in his footnotes, I digress. He writes me that A Proper Claret "nominally purports to represent an old-fangled style of' 'Claret,' it frankly strikes me as perhaps more of a version of the Cabernets I remember of the '60s and '70s. Slightly riper and richer than the '12 version, it is still quite elegant and restrained." Which is more than we can say for ffrench-Postalthwaite. Nearly 16,000 cases of A Proper Claret were made.

This wine is composed of a blend of red grapes, 46% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, 15% Tannat, 13.5% Petit Verdot, 7.7% Syrah and and .8% Petite Sirah. Did he say "point-eight-percent?" Did he say "Tannat?"

The interesting reading on the back label should not - could not - distract you from the wonderful illustration on the front, by New York City artist Bascove. The wine clocks in at a restrained 13.5% abv, no faint feat considering the high-octane grapes used in the mix. It retails for $16 and comes bottled under a proper screwcap.

The wine is as dark as night. Black fruit on the nose is adorned in customary Grahm-savory fashion by notes of sage, rosemary and a delicious black olive scent. The palate shows blackberry and cassis, but the wine is not dominated by fruit. Notes of cedar, cinnamon and cardamom play a huge role on the palate. The tannins are are firm, but elegant, and it should pair as as well with British bangers as they do with a good old American beef brisket.


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Wine Book: The Mad Crush

One of my wine country friends, Christopher Weir, has written a book about his experiences during one particular harvest at one particular winery. It’s called The Mad Crush: A Memoir of Mythic Vines and Improbable Winemaking, and it’s a great read. Its entertainment value is not restricted to those who know a lot about wine. Everyone can enjoy this book.

The Mad Crush is Weir’s personal recollection of the 1995 harvest at Saucelito Canyon Vineyard, in which he was recruited to help with the crush - the process of getting the grapes into the winery and making them into wine. Saucelito Canyon Vineyard is described on its website as being “in the middle of nowhere,” but a more accurate location would be the upper Arroyo Grande Valley of California’s Central Coast. This vineyard was originally planted in 1880, and the specialty of the house is old-vine Zinfandel.

Weir explains that while the book centers on the “eyebrow-raising escapades of the 1995 crush, it ultimately tells the larger tale of a century-old Zinfandel vineyard and the adventuresome characters who have dared to call it home.” It is his own personal account of the vineyard, its inhabitants and their place in California wine history. If you have a glass of wine while reading it, it’s like having a glass with a friend while he recounts the war stories of a season a couple of decades gone.

Interesting characters seem to gravitate to Weir, or he to them. In his role as a publicist for various wine concerns in the San Luis Obispo area, he has introduced me to several fascinating folks, including the most personal and hands-on vineyard tour I have ever experienced.

The one question that came to mind as I read the book was a wondered-aloud, “Why did he hold on to these stories for so long?” In almost the same instant I recalled the various books and screenplays that I and other friends have attempted, and the question became, “How did he ever find the time?” I’m not the only one who is glad that he did find that time.

The book has been getting some nice mentions from the wine-soaked likes of Joe Roberts, W. Blake Gray and rock-god Don Dokken, who is also a wine connoisseur. I’ll put my stamp of approval on it, too. There is nothing like a good collection of funny, interesting stories - when they happen to go so well with a glass of wine, The Mad Crush is irresistible.

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Blended Wines Offer Better Guessing Games

Blended wines have more to offer than varietal wines, in my humble opinion. The fun I experience while trying to pin down the percentages of the different grapes in the blend probably marks me as a wine geek beyond hope, but that's alright with me. It's a fate from which I feel no need to be rescued.

Cornerstone Cellars' Stepping Stone brand offers a white blend called Rocks! It combines Chardonnay, Viognier and Muscat Canelli, but the percentages are withheld - the better to cause wine geeks to wonder what those numbers are.

Cornerstone's managing partner, Craig Camp, made a sample available to me. He always shares more than wine with a sample, citing his own love of blends - particularly field blends, in which the grapes are grown together in the vineyard with only a guess as to what percentages make up the blend.

Camp writes, "My love of interesting blends goes back to the now famous Vintage Tunia by Silvio Jermann in Italy's Fruili." He says he was among the first American importers of this wine in the early 1980's. "During the same period I was introduced to the many blended southern French wines by Christopher Cannan," he continues. "No one debated too much the exact blends of these wines they way people do now. They were just enjoyed for what they were - delicious."

On the Jermann website, there is a quote from a wine writer on the virtues of Vintage Tunia: "No one until now has ever realised it, but it is the most extraordinary meditation wine in existence. Not in the passive sense (wine to drink while meditating), but in the active sense: it is a wine that makes you meditate.” So let's meditate on Stepping Stone Rocks! North Coast White Blend 2013.

One of the numbers Cornerstone does release is the alcohol content of 13.3%, a fairly moderate number. Also moderate is the retail price of $15.

Stepping Stone by Cornerstone Rocks! North Coast White Blend 2013 has a pale yellow tint in the glass, with a brilliant nose featuring a spray of floral notes with melon and a spicy, herbal twist. The palate offers very bright acidity in a wine that is sweet, but not syrupy. There is a cantaloupe note in the middle and a citrus finish. This is a natural with Japanese noodles, Pad Thai or penne pasta with sun-dried tomatoes.

The floral aromas give away the Muscat Canelli, while the fruit I attribute to the Chardonnay and the vibrant acidity to the Viognier. The alcohol moderation points to early harvest and the balance to just plain good winemaking.

Kari Auringer has just replaced Jeff Keene as the Cornerstone winemaker, by the way. According to Camp, "When Kari became winemaker for Cornerstone Cellars she was, in fact, coming home as, for most of the vintages of the 2000s, Kari was assistant winemaker to Celia Welch, who made the wines of Cornerstone Cellars from 2000 through 2007. Kari's fingerprint is already on almost a decade of Cornerstone Cellars wines. Over the last decade she has contributed to the fame of some of the Napa Valley's most luminous names including Scarecrow, Lindstrom, Keever, Kelly Fleming and Corra and has been singled out as a rising star in Napa Valley winemaking."


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Bonny Doon Vineyards Le Pousseur Syrah 2012

Bonny Doon Vineyards' 2012 Syrah, "Le Pousseur," is made from Syrah grapes grown in some nice Central Coast spots - 48% Alamo Creek Vineyard, 18% Bien Nacido Vineyard, 18% Spanish  Springs Vineyard and 16% Ventana Vineyard. These are cool-climate sites and the website states that with "a fair amount of whole clusters included, this is a savory Syrah of great restraint."

Randall Grahm writes that he finds Le Posseur "enchanting and captivating rather than overpowering." He labels it as a "feminine" Syrah. I don't make it a habit to argue with a winemaker about his wines, but I was taken to task once for the use of the term "feminine" as a sexist way to describe a wine. PC or not PC, it does not strike me as feminine. Maybe it's feminine in a masculine way. Or masculine in a feminine way. Maybe it's just a wine having a crisis of sexuality. Or maybe it's just a Syrah of great restraint. It retails for $26 and 2,126 cases were produced.

Under the screw cap is a wine which is opaque indigo. Big blueberry fruit dominates the nose with a savory undercurrent. It is possibly the fruitiest nose I've experienced from a Bonny Doon red, which usually lean savory. The palate shows dark fruit too, with just a hint of that black olive note Grahm's wines often exhibit. Very nice acidity and a good tannic grip top off an entirely enjoyable experience. The oak touch is nice, just right in fact.

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Bonny Doon Minds Its Own Beeswax

Le Cigare Blanc is the white counterpart to the always awesome Le Cigare Volant red blend, named for the alien spacecraft "banned by decree of the village council of Châteauneuf-du-Pape." The flying cigars may not be allowed to land in France, but they land in my place a lot. They are welcome visitors from another appellation far, far away. Well, just a bit north of me, anyway.

The 2013 Le Cigare Blanc, "Beeswax Vineyard," is a combination of 55% Roussanne grapes, 26% Grenache Blanc and 19% Picpoul grapes from Monterey County's Beeswax Vineyard. Roussanne and Grenache Blanc get around a bit in California, but I'd love to hear of another Cali wine sporting Picpoul.

Bonny Doon Vineyard winemaker Randall Grahm states, "We've made a very slight label change with this vintage. An echo of the mineral character that we were able to express in the wonderful '11, but perhaps a tad richer on the palate." Minerals are good, richer is good. I'm looking forward to sipping. The wine hits 14.5% abv on the alcohol scale and sells for $28 per bottle. 1965 cases were produced, and if there are any left at this time it's an oenological crime.

The '13 Le Cigare Blanc shows in the glass just slightly richer than pale gold. Aromas of quince and peach are smacked with a delightful salinity - not quite the smell of salt water, but pretty close to it. There's a note of candle wax in there, too. The palate is exquisite, with lovely white fruit flavors and a decent acidity which is tempered by the wine's mellow mouthfeel. Traces of a floral sense melt into a slightly saline feel on the finish.

It fits so well with a pasta salad featuring mozzarella, sun-dried tomatoes and capers that it seems incredible to think that the wine wasn't made with that dish in mind.

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Sparkling Syrah Shows Magnified Flavors And Aromas

Bonny Doon Vineyards' owner and winemaker Randall Grahm has made sparkling wine from Riesling, Albariño and Moscato grapes - not to mention his bubbly pear wine and sparkling cider crafted from apples, pears and quince.  This sparkling Syrah mines that adventurous vein further, while adding a page to his illustrious history with the Rhône grape.

The Bonny Doon Sparkling Syrah 2011 was released a little over a year ago to Bonny Doon's DEWN club members.  It is now available for $36 retail.  Grahm has high praise for it, if he does say so himself.  “It's my favorite Bonny Doon wine," notes the iconic Rhônemaster.

For the record, it is 83% Syrah from Jespersen Vineyard and 17% Grenache from Alta Loma Vineyard.   This Central Coast sparkler - effervescent, really - shows large bubbles that don't last long and carries an extremely modest alcohol content of 11.9% abv.

It is quite dark in the glass, with an expressive nose and an aggressive palate.  From the Bonny Doon website: "You love the aromas of Syrah, right? Now, get ready to smell them REAL BIG."  That's not a disclaimer, it's a billboard.   Intense aromas of the blackest berries are intertwined with the smell of Kalamata olives and roasted meat.

The palate is so heavily laced with the olive element that I am nearly convinced that I am drinking from the olive jar.  Earth comes through in abundance, as it does in Grahm's still wine Syrah efforts.  There is a note I labored over unsuccessfully, until I saw in Grahm's tasting notes that it is "spearmint Necco wafers."  Really?  This just gets better and better.

In a Twitter conversation with Grahm, he wrote that his sparkling Syrah is "similar to sparkling Shiraz but very elegant."  Grahm adds that the Bonny Doon Sparkling Syrah is "lower in alcohol, higher in acid than sparkling Shiraz; cool climate fruit, mintier than get-out."

Sparkling red wine may put one in mind of Lambrusco, but this operates on an entirely different level.  This is the sparkling red for those who feel Lambrusco just isn't enough fun.  As Grahm writes, it is "clearly a Syrah, but rendered in a way that is startlingly unexpected and just totally fun."  Expect some startling fun when you break out the church key to pop the crown cap on this bottle.

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Lodi Tempranillo: m2 Tormenta - A Storm In A Bottle

Late in 2014, a social media virtual wine tasting event was put on by Lodi Winegrowers.  This event attracted a crowd of interested wine writers, many of whom had already experienced a taste of Lodi with a similar event centered on the Cinsault wines produced with grapes from Bechthold Vineyard. The Lodi Tempranillo tasting was eye-opening as well.

One of the featured Tempranillos was from m2 Wines, a winery self-described as crafting artisanal wines from distinct California vineyards which reflect the unique personality of winemaker Layne Montgomery.  His Tormenta Tempranillo is a storm of aromas and flavors.

The grapes for m2's 2012 Tormenta - 100% Tempranillo - come from vines in the 24-year-old Kirschenman Vineyard.  The Lodi soil tended by Alan Kirschenman - who is name-checked on the label - is composed of sand with light clay and gravel.

Tormenta is tank fermented and aged for 14 months French oak, 15% of which is new, with medium-plus toast.  295 cases were made, each bottle showing 15% abv and costing $22.

During the social media event for which the m2 Tormenta was supplied, @Lodi_Wine noted that "Winemaker Montgomery started in the broadcast business before moving to winemaking."  As a former broadcaster myself, I can feel the kinship.  Others also commented while sipping his wine.  @TheWineyMom liked the "M2 nose of coffee and mocha - first time I've sniffed these in #Tempranillo."  @dvinewinetime tweeted that "The nose on the '12 M2 Tempranillo is perfumed & floral w/ slight rotten egg."  Hmm.  I got a savory note, but it wasn't rotten.  @norcalwine says the m2 Tempranillo "is a mouthful of wine: creamy and packed with flavor. Red ripe fruit, sweet dill, cocoa!"  @myvinespot compared Lodi's Tempranillos with their Cinsault wines: "Where the lighter and brighter Lodi Cinsaults go well w/ turkey, the Tempranillos match well w/ turducken."

The m2 Tormenta is tinted a medium-dark red and has a gorgeous nose that lifts readily out of the glass.  Bright cherry and blackberry aromas mingle with cedar, pipe tobacco and a little smack of clove.  The palate is lively and flavorful, with great acidity that really makes the wine feel fresh in the mouth.  Tannins are on the tall side, a bit toothy, but not a problem with barbecued ribs and smoked sausage.  In fact, Tormenta also went quite well with a smoked English cheddar cheese.

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Whole Foods Wines: Bubo Cabernet Sauvignon

Everybody loves a wine with a back story, even if the back story is a bit contrived.  Bubo - a California winery - has taken the Latin word for "owl" as their name.  It's also the name of the goddess Athena's magical owl, so we are getting into Edith Hamilton's territory - something I didn't really anticipate as I tossed aside the old cap'n'gown.

Owls are associated with wisdom, good fortune and animals that wear glasses.  They are also known in modern times as great pest control devices - that makes the name perfect for a winery, since most vineyards have owls - real or plastic - stationed on their vine trellises to keep away vermin who like to munch on grapes.  Vermin who don't know any better will end up on the business end of a set of talons, leaving no one to tell the story and warn the young 'uns of the terrible vineyard raptor who guards the sweet little clusters.  It may seem sad for the vermin, but business is business.  Personally, I'd rather see grapes in the form of a 750 ml bottle than as vermin food.

So, owls are alright with me.  We once had a couple of owls in the trees near our home, and I took the chance of hooting back to them one evening.  They went away and we didn't hear their hoots for months.  I always wondered what it was I said that offended them so.  Could it have been something like "vermin is murder?"  They may have decided to hoot it up for a while in more carnivorous trees.

Since owls are such good stewards of the land, Bubo Wine Cellars says they are "deeply committed to a sustainable farming philosophy that recognizes that growers are long-term stewards of the land they farm.  We favor natural over man-made controls and encourage biodiversity."  That means there will be owls.  In fact, there is one on the label.  There is no mention of exactly where the grapes are grown; the appellation is "California," and that covers a lot of ground.

The Bubo Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 allows you to hoot it up for under $20 at Whole Foods Market, where it is a mainstay of the wine department.  At 13.5% abv, you can hoot it up a little more than you usually do with a California Cab and avoid that "not so in control" feeling.  When you decide to try and hoot at the owl on the label, it's time to put the cork back in for the night.

Bubo Cabernet pours up deep and dark, and gives a big whiff of oak spice on the nose.  Clove and vanilla jump right out, leaving the cassis notes running behind.  There are some spicy and herbal aromas playing into the nose as well.  Flavors of ripe blackberries and red currants carpet the palate, with those oaky notes coming through.  Clove and vanilla pave the way for cinnamon and a hint of eucalyptus.  Tannins are up front and ready to take apart a juicy bite of ribeye, while the acidity sits fresh on the tongue.

If the wine were not as complex as it is, I might be tempted to think it too oak-driven.  With all that's going on here, though, the oak effect is as welcome as an owl in a vineyard.  Just keep an eye on your vermin.


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A Good Cigare Is A Smoke

To say that Randall Grahm is an iconoclast may be a little strong.  After all, he did knock down a few walls while finding his way as a winemaker.  He did not do so out of spite, of course, but as a means of redefining what was possible in the vineyards of California.  He had a go with Pinot Noir but, in a case of “right grape, wrong place,” he moved on to helping give the grapes of the Rhône Valley an official residency in the Golden State.  His Franco fascination really knows no borders, extending to the vines of Spain, Italy and Germany as well.

Grahm’s label notes say the Bonny Doon Vineyard 2010 Le Cigare Volant Réserve en bonbonne “seems to disarmingly suggest a Burgundian take on Châteauneuf, if such a notion can be fashioned.  This is not an ordinary wine.”  To which I can add, somewhat less poetically, “You got that right.”  You may be tempted to think of Le Cigare Volant Réserve as a brawny Pinot Noir.  Its roots are Rhône, though - no surprise, coming from the winemaker who is sometimes billed as The Rhône Ranger.

The wine is made from Central Coast grapes, 28% Syrah, 22% Grenache, 17% Cinsault, 17% Mourvèdre, and 16% Carignane.  Alcohol is a very restrained 13.3% abv,, which makes this a beautiful wine to sip - despite its obvious talent as a mate for food.  It retails for $79.  Grahm advises us to, “Ideally hold for a year or two (Sept. 2015-16).”  He feels the wine can stand a good 15 to 20-plus years of aging.  The iconic label art by Chuck House appears so often in my home it’s almost an installation.

This Cigare is the same blend as Le Cigare Volant normale, but for the réserve, the wine spends only a short time in barrel.  It is put in five-gallon glass carboys - bonbonnes - for twenty months of sur lie aging.  Grahm feels aging the wine in glass, while still in contact with the spent yeast cells, adds to the wine’s integration, complexity and savoriness.

The dark wine shows some truly outstanding attributes, beginning with the nose.  Black cherry fruit is delightfully muted by the savory side - black olives, tobacco, smoke and spice all have a part to play.  It's an olfactory experience to be savored, and it gets better.  In the mouth, this Cigare really gets lit.  The acidity is phenomenal and the tannins are nice and firm, so save a seat for it at the dinner table.  Flavors of plums, raspberries, blackberries and cranberries make a broad palette that showcases a spicy aspect, stretching from cinnamon to sassafras. Slightly tart on the finish, that Burgundian reference plays out nicely.

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