CASA LAPOSTOLLE SAUVIGNON BLANC

A lunchtime stop at Wood Ranch in Los Angeles seemed like a good time to try a Chilean Sauvignon Blanc.  This Wood Ranch location is either in The Grove or the Farmer's Market.  It's hard to tell, as it lies between the two shopping meccas at 3rd and Fairfax.  It might be neither, but it's certainly not both.  At any rate, the parking validation policy is no help - the restaurant doesn't kick in for the parking cost at either place, so I guess I'll stop complaining and enjoy the wine.

The Casa Lapostolle Sauvignon Blanc is produced in the Rapel Valley of Chile's Central Valley region.  The Lapostolle winery is owned by the Marnier Lapostolle family, the fine folks who bring you Grand Marnier liqueur.  In addition to their spirits, they have been producing wine in the Loire Valley for a number of years.  The family bought into this Chilean winery in 1994.  The vines of the estate are apparently quite old, having been brought from France in pre-phylloxera days.  The Sauvignon Blanc cost $8 by the glass.  Plus parking.  Grrr.

A pale green tint emanates from the glass and the nose gives a gentle grassiness with minerals and wet rocks - rather like rainfall on the pavement of an expensive parking lot - joining peach and citrus aromas.  The acidity is refreshing, but the wine feels full in my mouth - almost creamy, in fact.  Soft lemon and lime flavors take on am essence of custard, or key lime pie.

It's a great match for the fantastic clam chowder at Wood Ranch.



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WINE THEMED AFTER CHILEAN MINERS

A British Design firm, Unreal, gave its clients a rather unusual gift during the Christmas season.  According to the website FastCoDesign.com, the firm labeled a designer line of wine as "Chilean Winers."  The reference point, of course, is the group of Chilean miners who were trapped underground for 69 days in late 2010.

You might remember that while they were trapped, the 33 miners sent a request to those at ground level for some wine to help make their internment more tolerable.  That request was denied.

One bottle for each trapped miner - 33 in all - were produced by Unreal, and they were named and numbered after the miners in the order in which they were rescued.  The bottle came packed in a tube representing the Fenix 2 rescue capsule, underneath a bit of gravel the recipient has to dig through in order to get to the wine.

The design firm - noted for their unusual and sometimes irreverent marketing ploys - claims the wine's packaging was conceived as a tribute, but others say it was merely a tasteless scheme that cashed in on the miners' suffering.

Image courtesy of Unreal

LUIS FELIPE EDWARDS ROSA BLANCA AT SOUTH POINT

The food is great at South Point Argentine Grill on Sunset Boulevard, and Mrs. Now And Zin loves it, so we dine there quite often.  The half chicken with rice is fabulous, the Patagonia salad is great and their sausage is to die for.  I have issues, however, with the way they serve red wine.  In the glass, it's often almost warm to the touch, and that's too warm.  To quote my friend, Art, "When you serve wine at room temperature, the room should be a cave, not the kitchen."  I'm sure you agree.

So c’mon South Point, get the wine right!  And while you're at it, straighten out the music.  South American folk one time, classic rock the next, blaring ranchera on this visit - I'd like to know what to expect when I come to your restaurant.

On our most recent visit, once again I was served a wine that seemed on its way to mulled status.  It was Luis Felipe Edwards Rosa Blanca Organic.  Fortunately, this Chilean wine from the Colchagua Valley did not suffer as much as some others I have had there.  It's essentially a Cabernet Sauvignon, with a bit Carmenere added.  Both grapes come from the same vineyard, one that sits next to a bed of white roses.  That's the origin of the name.

In the glass, a dark purple core only lightens a bit at the edge.  The nose gave away a lot of alcohol early, but that settled down after ten minutes or so.  The fruit rides in the front seat and waves at you when it passes by.  Aromas of dark berries and plums are foremost in the bouquet, while the plums come through strongly on the palate, along with a leathery flavor.  There isn't a lot of graphite or smoke discernable to me, which I found mildly surprising.  The somewhat short finish is the only drawback.

SANTA EMA SAUVIGNON BLANC 2009 AT BRIO TUSCAN GRILLE, LAS VEGAS

During my recent trip to Las Vegas I found myself away from the casino for a spell.  I'm not too sure how that happened, but while strolling around in the 100+ degree heat - dry heat - I decided it was time for some refreshment.

Brio Tuscan Grille is a chain restaurant, but they appear to take a little more interest in the wine list than that usually indicates.  On this hot afternoon, refreshment came in the form of a Chilean white wine.

Santa Ema Sauvignon Blanc is from Chile's Central Valley region, in the Maipo Valley.  It's 100% Sauvignon Blanc and costs $7 per glass.  It also costs about that for a bottle at many retailers.

Refreshment is what I wanted, and refreshment was delivered.  Pale, straw-colored in the glass, the nose is grassy and grapefruity with some tropical notes.  There's also a whiff of fresh melons.  The palate shows citrus on peaches.  There's a delighful acidity with a very light and refreshing mouthfeel.  The finish is medium long, but entirely delightful.

CORINTO CHARDONNAY 2008

I had such a nice experience at Sublime Food Lounge for my last Friday treat, I thought I'd go for another one.  I hoped to find if it was just the vibe on that previous Friday or if the little bar was really that great a place to have a glass of wine.

This time, it was a bit windy.  That meant the doors were in the closed position, so there was no open-air experience.  But the doors are glass and there was enough light coming in to let me know it was definitely the middle of the afternoon.

I decided to stay on the white wine side of the menu and opted for a Chardonnay from Chile.  Afterward, the bartender and I had a brief conversation about how hard the wine industry was hit in Chile.  He told me Corinto Winery , in Chile's Central Valley, was among the wineries hit very hard in February's major earthquake there.  Sublime is trying to get more product from the winery, but they are having trouble getting the wine here by ship.  They've been waiting five months for more.  It made me glad I chose a Chilean wine.

This Chardonnay looks yellow-gold in the glass with a greenish tinge around the edges.  The nose is tropical.  Pineapple, for sure, but there's a faint trace of banana in there, too.  Notes of oak come through in the aromas. 

On the palate this wine is very, very soft.  The flavor of peaches are somewhat obscured by a nuttiness that just seems crazy in a Chardonnay.  It may actually be a little too soft for some, but I find the quaffability quotient to be quite high.  On the finish - as weird as it seems - I get the sense of coffee way, way in the background.

"They Got This Recession On" Wines, Part 13

Viñas Chilenas Reserva Merlot 2009 

Viñas Chilenas is a Trader Joe brand produced and bottled by Videma S.A.  From Chile's Valle Central area.   It rings up at the register at a paltry $2.99.  Will this wine beat the recession for us?  Let's sip it and see.

First, a look-see shows a dark purple hue I can see through, with some red at the edges.  The nose is a bit tight, but I smell berry and currant, along with a very slight smokiness.  The first sip is a bit tannic, but things smoothed out nicely after just a few minutes.  There's blackberry, cherry and raspberry on the palate.  It's a nice taste, a medium mouthfeel, maybe a little thin for me, and a bit uninspired.

Anything more than a cursory description, I feel, will be damning the wine with faint praise.  It's a decent enough drink, just not very interesting.  For three dollars, I expected less than that.  I generally spend well over that amount on a bottle of wine, so I don't have to settle for a "decent enough drink."  And in the future, I won't.  But if you're trying to stretch your wine dollar as far as possible, you could do worse.

Variety:  Merlot

Appellation:  Chile > Central Valley > Maipo Valley

Vintage:  2009

Alcohol Level:  13.5%

Price:  $3

Acquisition disclaimer:   Purchased by the author