HOSTILE GRAPE AT M, LAS VEGAS

Hostile Grape is the wine cellar and bar downstairs from the casino in the M Resort in Las Vegas. I should say "just south of Las Vegas," though. M is the southernmost resort hotel in Vegas - for the moment, anyway.  Things do change quickly in LV.

The wine cellar is a large room, and dark. 15 minutes after opening on a Friday afternoon, it was empty, too.  They tell me the crowd grows, but I was a little surprised at how few people had made their way there by 6:00 p.m.  A barrel stave ceiling makes a great thematic touch.  Six very large couches and tables line the center of the room, while the bar down the left side seats twelve. Jazzy, funky music plays on the sound system, but the quality of the selections varies widely.

There is an automated wine sample dispenser with samples ranging from $2 to $9 per ounce.  You can also order glasses or bottles from the list.

The menu features mostly California wines, with some French and Italian selections.  Marinelli seems to be the house wine, which I was told is produced by Napa Valley winery Cosentino.  By-the-glass offerings include three sparkling wines, six reds and six whites.

It's a beautiful room, and until the thrill-seeking hordes in Las Vegas find out about it, it's a great place for a quiet tête à tête.

I had the Craggy Range Sauvignon Blanc, Te Muna Road Vineyard from Marlborough, New Zealand. I'll write more about that later.

OJAI WINE FESTIVAL 2010

A trip to Ojai is always a good thing, but it's that much better this coming weekend.  The Ojai Wine Festival takes place Sunday June 13, 2010 from noon to 5:00 p.m.  The pouring will actually stop at 4:00, so get there as early as you can.

More than 40 wineries and breweries will pour their wares in the great outdoors of the Lake Casitas Recreation Area, on the northern shore of the lake.  The wineries are mostly Central Coast producers, but there is a smattering of wineries representing Napa Valley, Sonoma County and Lodi.  You will also be able to visit a "by-the-glass" section, where you can sit and relax with a six-dollar glass of wine.

Some Central Coast favorites will be pouring, like Alma Rosa, Brander, Bridlewood, Curtis, Core Wine, Cottonwood Canyon, Daniel Gehrs, Dragonette, Lincourt, Foley, Hitching Post, Mosby, Ritual, Santa Barbara Winery and Summerland.

Entertainment will be provided by by a pair of bands, 11-piece rock'n'soul band Tom Thumb and the Hitchikers and a tribute band named Sgt. Pepper.  You'll also be able to take a 20-minute boat ride around the lake for free.

Tickets are a pretty reasonable $30 in advance, $40 at the gate.  Parking is $5 on site.  A ticket buys ten tastes of wine or beer and a souvenir wine glass.   The proceeds from the festival benefit the Rotary Club of Ojai-West and the countless organizations they help.

Directions:

From the 101 Freeway exit north onto State Route 33. Five miles north of the 101 (at the Foster Park Exit) the speed limit drops to 35 mph and the four lanes become two. At this point, North Ventura Avenue merges with Highway 33. From this point on, street signs refer to it as either North Ventura Avenue or Highway 33. Proceed north on Highway 33 to Baldwin Road and turn left.

There is a scenic route given on their website as well. Feeling adventurous?

Where Highway 33 narrows to two lanes, exit at Casitas Vista Road. Loop around to the right, go under the freeway, over the dry Ventura River bed and turn right onto Casitas Vista Road. In a short while, turn right again onto Santa Ana Road. Go over the bridge toward the Casitas Lake entrance. In about ten miles, the Recreational Area will be on your left.

All this information, and more, is available on the Ojai Wine Festival website.

Feel free to leave comments on this blog, or you can always email Randy Fuller at nowandzin@gmail.com.

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.

CONUNDRUM 2006

We have a trip to Las Vegas coming up, my wife and I.  She likes the pre-programmed entertainment value of slots, while I prefer the minute-to-minute changing of the odds with blackjack.  It's one of the great benefits of the game of "21" that you can see most of the cards in play.  Everyone plays against the dealer, so hiding one's cards is not necessary.  Not so with poker.  In poker, one guards his cards like a state secret lest one of those secrets is seen by an opponent, to your detriment.  That's where the phrase "play your cards close to your vest" comes from.  Keep your hand pressed against your chest, and no one will be able to see what's there.

Conundrum likes to play their cards close to the vest.  They'll tell you that the grapes in this white blend are: Sauvignon Blanc from the Napa Valley and Muscat Canelli from the Central Coast, with Chardonnay and Viognier from their vineyards in Monterey County, but that's all.  They won't tell you what the percentages are.  Therein lies the conundrum.  About one-fourth of the wine is fermented in stainless steel, while the remainder is fermented in both new and seasoned oak for up to ten months.  The wine has 13.5% abv.

The nose resonates with a huge floral aspect.  There is also some apricot in there, a little citrus and some light spiciness.  It's very lush and inviting.  The palate conveys a tropical feel.  Pineapple is present, along with a little banana.  Apricot and limes follow with the wonderful acidity which makes Conundrum a no-brainer as a food wine.

I love to have Conundrum with seafood, especially rich lobster, crab and shrimp.  It also pairs well with salads, although it really hits the proverbial food homer when matched with buttery scallops.

CANTINE VALPANE BARBERA DEL MONFERRATO SUPERIORE 2001

Kermit Lynch  is one of those people referred to as a "tastemaker." His knowledge of wine is legendary - at least - and it's widely known that when he finds a wine he likes enough to import to the US, it's worth drinking.  I've seen many wine articles begin with the words, "I don't know anything about this wine, but it's got Kermit Lynch's name on it so I thought I'd give it a try."

To find Cantine Valpane , Mr. Lynch traveled to Italy's Monferrato region.  There the limestone and clay in the soil is said to help produce some very fine Barbera.  This wine gets a boost from the addition of up to 15% Freisa.  These grapes heighten the wine's fruity aspect. 

The wine spends about a year-and-a-half in French oak barrels and is then transferred to stainless steel vats in which it rests before bottling.  The bottle claims an alcohol content of 14.5% abv, and I believe it's at least that.

It's a dark ruby color, but not inky.  There is a powerful nose, heavy with currants, anise and lots of alcohol.  This Barbera required well over an hour of breathing the first night. The second night it was good to go on pouring. 

The taste is quite brambly, with enough leather to make a fine saddle.  There's a spicy characteristic and an almost-hidden hint of raspberry.  It strikes me as a very tough-tasting wine.  It's not a wine you'll drink without ruminating on, that's for sure.

After the bottle was open for three days - we dined out a lot that week - it took on that wonderful scent that is a cross between an old baseball glove and a plant.  Maybe an old baseball glove growing on a cornstalk. Listen carefully and you'll hear, "If you open it, they will drink."

MER SOLEIL LATE 2004

My wife loves her sweets.  Well, yes, that does include me.  She also loves dessert wines, and has a history of selecting them for us with an uncanny knack for choosing some very high-quality sweet wines.

The Mer Soleil LATE came in a shipment of Monterey County dessert wines for review - her eyes lit up when we opened that box - and, like the others in the crate, it did not disappoint.

LATE is a late harvest Viognier from Santa Lucia, kissed by a favorite fungus fans of dessert wine are fond of - Botrytis cinerea.  The Noble Rot, as it is sometimes called, affects grapes on the vine, and those grapes produce wines that are sweet.

The color grabs your attention right away, and I love when a wine does that.  The color is an extremely rich gold, vibrant and beautiful.  Aromas of  honeyed apricots make a lovely nose, which are also in abundance on the palate.  An orange zest profile reveals itself in the flavors, too, but in a secondary role to the apricots and honey.  The wine is sweet, but does not cloy; the sweetness is bold and lively.  The finish lingers as if it's trying to stick around until the next sip is taken.  The alcohol content is only 10.5% abv, but the acidity is almost high enough to be called bracing. 

The Mer Soleil winery also grows Meyer lemon trees on their property, figuring if the grapes get damaged by frost, the lemons would probably be OK and they could at least harvest something.  The lemons are a welcome addition to their income, I'm sure, but it's nice to know they haven't had to resort to a lemon wine.  I'll take the late harvest Viognier any day.

RIVERBENCH VINEYARD AND WINERY

The Santa Maria wine country can look a little under-populated as you drive through all the vineyard land.  It's a rarity to see signs of people, in fact, and a pleasure when hospitality suddenly appears.  Located in a pretty little house on the estate, theRiverbench Vineyard and Winery tasting room sits at the northern end of the Foxen Canyon Wine Trail which winds from Los Olivos to Santa Maria.  It is one of those welcome oases of hospitality.

The Room

The tasting room was quite busy for my Saturday afternoon visit, and the staff seemed a bit harried.  There were plenty of them to go around, however, and they were very helpful and forthcoming with information about the wines they were pouring.  The pouring was handled by whoever was close-by at the time my glass was empty.  That is expedient, but I prefer to have the same person pouring all my samples.  I find it more streamlined that way and I get a better feel for the information I am given.  That said, I do understand the pourers were trying to accommodate a big crowd in the best way possible.  I do appreciate being served so quickly for each taste, even if it was by a different person each time.

The Pink

The Riverbench '09 Pinot Noir Rosé was the leadoff hitter.  This is a new release, a pink produced in the saignée method, in which the juice is bled off from the skins.  It's all stainless steel and features fun flavors of strawberry, raspberry and citrus.  It is rather full-bodied for a rosé and finishes dry, the way it should.

The Whites

The Bedrock Chardonnay 2008 was a medal winner in a couple of Southern California wine competitions.   It is an unoaked Chardonnay, but the mouthfeel is so full and round and there are so many luscious spicy notes the vats must have been made from "I Can't Believe It's Not Wood."  The tropical aspects are somewhat subdued in this Chablis-style wine and there's a guava profile that I mistook for vanilla at first.  It's a really lovely wine.  The Chapel View Chardonnay 2008 is entirely Clone 4 Chardonnay.  It has a full complement of soft, buttery wood notes and tastes tropical with a nutty edge.  The 2007 Estate Chardonnay has a light tropical flavor with a bit of toast and the best acidity of the three Chards I tasted.  You'll want to linger on the interesting finish where the guava shines.

The Reds

I really liked the 2007 Estate Pinot Noir.  The nose reminds me of Christmas, full of clove and cinnamon.  The palate features dark berries and spices.  It has a good, smokey finish, too.  TheMesa Pinot Noir 2007 brings lavender and clove to the nose and has a really soft mouthfeel.  It's a special wine.  I was given a taste of a Pinot not on their tasting menu, the One Palm Pinot Noir 2008.  This had a much earthier texture than the other two and would normally jump to the top of my list, but I honestly would have a hard time choosing one favorite from these three.

BARBECUE SEASON IS HERE

The weather is trying to turn warmer.  In Southern California, it's been backsliding a bit of late.  One day we'll get temperatures which make one think summer must surely be on the express train to our depot.  The next day our shoulders are scrunched up, we're breathing into our fists and leaning into a freezing gale-force wind.  May in Southern California is just delightful.  Now June is here, and all those who grill are hoping a turn for the warmer is in the cards.

Apparently, I'm not the only one looking forward to firing up a grill.  The most recent email newsletter from Wine Expo in Santa Monica lists a few wines they recommend pairing with grilled delectables.  It also contains one of the best descriptions of "barbecue as a religion" that I've seen.  Here it is:

"Schisms, Isms and the McRibbs Heresy

BBQ is a fundamentalist religion in some areas and has at least three major sects: the Orthodox Friars of Fruitwood Smoke Slow Cooking, the Sainted Sisters of The Sauce is Boss and the somewhat exotic and hard to find Vicars of the Vinaigrette Marinade (an Eastern offshoot of the famously violent Dry Rub Rebellion of 1893). The defining of BBQ can start an argument (or even a fist fight) because (just like traditional wine styles) THESE THINGS MATTER: it is the culture, patrimony and heritage of someone you are talking about, and that does not come in a bottle from the supermarket. But, being a Big Tent house of The Q, we here at WINE EXPO are willing to arbitrate if you bring enough samples for lunch, and we have also searched the globe to find wines fit for it all so you (andyour Sweet Red Sauce loving Brother in Law) can have an ecumenical holiday weekend."

Wine Expo's website has the rest of the newsletter and those wine recommendations for your spring cookouts.  By the way, their newsletter mentions - almost in passing - that Wine Expo hopes to be pouring wine in their very own tasting room by June 2010!  I wonder if they'll set up a grill in the parking lot for opening day?

KENNETH VOLK VINEYARDS

When I dropped in at the Kenneth Volk Vineyards tasting room, I was met by two busloads of people who looked like escapees from a school for rodeo clowns.  Their manner of dress appeared to be specifically designed to get attention, and it worked.  The buses they arrived in were whitewashed school buses, so there was no indication as to their point of origin.  I was relieved to find the noisy bunch was egressing as I arrived, and their visit appeared to have left the tasting room crew wide-eyed and breathless.  I think they were glad the attention could now be focused on the nice, quiet wine writer.  I'm sure I looked a lot more manageable than they did.

Grapes

Ken Volk founded Paso Robles' Wild Horse Winery and jumped at the chance to open his namesake winery in the Santa Maria Valley.  The winery and tasting room are located among the vineyards at the northern end of the Foxen Canyon Wine Trail, which runs from Los Olivos to Santa Maria.  Volk produces wines utilizing Burgundy and Bordeaux grape varieties, and he also has a penchant for the odd, forgotten or under-appreciated grape.  So do I, so I was particularly interested in finding out about what Volk calls his "heirloom" wines.

Missed Connections

There were two disappointments on my visit to the Volk Santa Maria tasting room this day.  First, the winemaker was at his other tasting room, in Paso Robles.  Second, two of his heirloom wines - which are to be released soon - are "not quite ready," as the tasting room crew told me.  They also told me that had Volk been present, he would most surely have poured me a sample of both the Touriga National and Alicante that are in the works.  I will patiently await my opportunity to try them.

A New Friend

Happily, there were plenty of wines I could taste.  The red wines were being poured in the barrel room, but I began with the whites, which were being poured outside in the "backyard."  Jerrett, my pourer, was quite affable.  Denise was with me, and we encountered Jarrett separately.  When we were leaving, she asked me, "So how long have you known Jerrett?"  Perplexed, I told her I had just met him.  She explained that he had so many good things to say about me, she just assumed we were friends.  Well, now I guess we are.

As Jerrett introduced me to the Volk whites - all the while regaling me with the story of his involvement with Ken's company - I imagined that he must have gotten along nicely with the busloads of rodeo clowns that had just departed.  He probably gets along well with everyone.  He's that kind of guy.

Wine Tasting, The Whites

It was a perfect, sunny day for sampling some chilled white wines in the great outdoors.  I started with one of Volk's heirloom wines, the Malvasia Bianca 2008.  The fruit is from the San Bernabe vineyard in Monterey County.  It's an off-dry wine with a lot of character, smelling and tasting of lychee and flowers.  The '08 Verdelho was next.  Verdelho is a grape from the Portuguese island of Madeira.  The fruit for this wine comes from the El Pomar Junction vineyard in the Paso Robles AVA.  The wine is big in the mouth, displaying a tropical feel both on the nose and palate.  The citrus flavors turned into guava at mid-palate in a very interesting transformation.  The '07 Viognier also sports a guava profile, as well an interesting green apple flavor that is right up front.  Santa Maria Valley grapes are used for the Sierra Madre Vineyard Chardonnay 2006.  This wine has a very pungent nose that shows the influence of the wood dramatically and layers spicy notes - notably nutmeg - on top of the tropical flavors.

Wine Tasting, The Reds

Gary was pouring the red wines in Volk's big, cool barrel room.  I saw four wines on the list which immediately grabbed my interest.  The tiny grapes used in the '08 Negrette come from the Caleri vineyard near Hollister in San Benito County.  Brambly blackberry on the nose shows plenty of complexity on the palate, as the fruit joins up with leather, anise and earth in what the winemaker describes as "Syrah meets Pinot."  Volk's '05 Cabernet Franc is produced from Paso Robles fruit and shows a perfumy lavender nose along with a very nice earthiness.  It's a big, full mouthfull of plums.  The '05 Tempranillo from Starr Ranch vineyard in Paso Robles has a bright nose with a taste that makes me think of the old west, full of licorice and sagebrush.  The '04 Claret is a blend of 39% Cabernet Franc, 33% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Sauvignon.  At once it is juicy, plummy, dry and grippy with a bit of medicine bottle on the nose.

A Lot Left On The Table

There were about ten wines I didn't taste including three Pinot Noirs, a Zinfandel, a Syrah and a Petite Sirah which got compliments from several others while I was tasting.  By the way, the grounds at Kenneth Volk are perfectly suited for a picnic.  There are a couple of tables in a beautiful garden setting in front and some picnic tables in the backyard that would be suitable for a group.  Just call and make sure the rodeo clowns aren't scheduled there, too.
 

THE 100-POINT WINE RATING SYSTEM AS APPLIED TO OTHER ARTS

The 100-point rating system used by wine critics such as Robert Parker is either embraced or reviled.  I include myself in the latter group.

I think of winemaking as an artistic process.  Is it really possible to accurately describe a wine's value with a numerical representation?  I think not.  But there are many who would disagree with that viewpoint.

What if other art forms - music, for instance - were rated on a 100-point scale the way wine is?

Utilizing Robert Parker's scoring system, an assessment of the Rolling Stones' "Exile On Main Street" might go, as they say in the Poconos, a little something like this:

“I am giving this CD, as I do all CDs, a base of 50 points.

“The general color and appearance of the CD merit up to 5 points. With most CD artwork being produced by professional artists, most CDs receive 4 or even 5 points.

“In the case of "Exile...," however, I must insist that the cover artwork seems put together in what I will generously refer to as a haphazard way.  It actually appears to be the work of a rather disturbed child who discovered some old photos in the attic and made a collage from them.  I will award only 2 points for the disappointing appearance of this CD.

“The words and music merit up to 15 points, depending on the intensity level and dimension of the words and music as well as the cleanliness.

“First of all, I can only understand about half the words.  Those I can understand seem directed from the gutter.  While the lyrics seem delivered with a certain amount of fervor, especially in some of the faster songs, I feel some understandability is required.  The cleanliness level leaves much to be desired.  The music is written and performed in a professional style, in keeping with other rock CD of the Classic Rock variety, so I'll award 7 points.

“The sound and emotional impact merit up to 20 points.  I may not understand it, but it kicks ass. 17 points.

“Finally, the overall quality level or potential for further evolution and improvement merits up to 10 points.  The overall quality seems only moderately high, even given the recording techniques of the day.  Moreover, owing to the advancing age of the principals of this unit, I can't reasonable expect much improvement through aging.  3 points.

“Total score for 'Exile On Main Street': 79 points.”

Is "Exile..." really a 79-point CD?  If the critic isn't inclined to like the Rolling Stones, maybe it is.  But for those who do like them, and consider "Exile..." to be a classic of the rock era, what are we to make of the 79-point score?

The same questions can be asked about a wine's critical rating.  Is the critic simply not a fan of the winery or the vineyard from which the grapes are taken?  Does he or she simply not care for Grenache, Merlot or White Zinfandel?  Did the critic simply not wake up on the wine-appreciating side of the bed that day?

I would prefer to see wine criticism stated in words, not numbers.  I enjoy reading about what a taster thinks of different wines, but I have a hard time relating to a number score which leaves so much unsaid and open to interpretation.

Please leave a comment on how this topic hits you.  If you'd prefer to email me, you can do so atnowandzin@gmail.com.  Twitter users can message me: Twitter .  You can also tip in onFacebook .  I look forward to hearing what you have to say.

CORE WINE COMPANY

Core Wine Company - Dave Corey entered the wine industry in the mid 1990s in successive positions with Cambria Winery and Kendall-Jackson Vineyards. He started his own company in 1999, consulting vineyards on technical issues. Now, he is a full-time winemaker. Dave and his wife Becky head up Core Wine Company, and they share hosting duties in the tasting room in Old Orcutt. The old section of Orcutt may not be a killer destination, but it is a nice little place with a ton of small-town charm right off the freeway. Addamo Estate Vieyards' tasting room is right across the street from Core Wine, so it's a great little stop for some wine tasting.

The Fruit

Core Wine's main fruit source is the Alta Mesa Vineyard in eastern Santa Barbara County. They get additional grapes from Laetitia, Camp 4, Rodney's and French Camp vineyards, so their wines are all Santa Barbara County.

The People

When I dropped in to Core Wine, it was Becky behind the counter, pouring and talking about their wines. She and Dave share wine duties as well as home duties, so I would imagine you'll rarely find both of them in the tasting room together. Their operation is so small, their website explains, that Becky is "Employee Of The Month" - every month.

The Wine

Core Wine has four different brands. The Core label focuses on Rhone blends, Kuyam on Bordeaux blends, C3 features Tempranillo-based wines and Turchi specializes in single-varietal wines. On my visit, Becky poured comparisons of two vintages from the "hard core" and "elevation sensation" wines.

The 2006 "elevation sensation" is a lean blend of 61% Grenache and 39% Mourvèdre from the Alta Mesa vineyard.  The nose is mellow and the wine is medium weight and very smooth.  Cherry and earth on the palate made me think instantly of Pinot Noir.  The 2007 vintage struck me favorably, too, with the main difference being a brighter nose.

The "hard core" wine also has Mourvèdre and Grenache from Alta Mesa, with the addition of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon in this Santa Barbara County blend.  The 2006 vintage has a brilliant nose with a fair amount of wood influence.  I get a lot more wood in this wine than I did in the "elevation sensation," probably due to the presence of the Cab and Syrah.  Sour cherry on the palate is abetted by firm tannins.  The 2007 vintage boosts the Mourvèdre and Cab percentages while backing off the Grenache.  This results in a wine that is a little darker in attitude than the '06, but just as lip-smackingly juicy.

Core Wine also features a pair of white Rhone blends - Grenache Blanc/Roussanne/Marsanne and Roussanne/Marsanne - as well as a rosé that sports ten different grape varieties and a late harvest Grenache called Candy Core.  Bordeaux fans will want to investigate the Kuyam label while the C3 sticker provides several Tempranillo wines, both in single-varietal and blended form. 

DAY TRIP TO SANTA BARBARA COUNTY

With the unofficial beginning of summer already here, and the official start only about three weeks away, I thought I'd share a nice day trip Denise and I took to Santa Barbara County wine country.  From Los Angeles, you can reach a number of great wine country spots in just a couple of hours driving time.  This particular trip was front-loaded with lots of stops for fresh produce, and it stretched up to Santa Maria, so our trip there took about four hours.  Your mileage may vary.

The Day Trip Begins

We leave the house at 7:30 and reach the Ventura Freeway in about 15 minutes.  A day in wine country is beginning to unfold before us.  After what seems like no time at all - but is actually about 45 minutes - we are in Camarillo.  We like to stop at theOld New York Deli and Bakery Co. for breakfast.  Today we share a corned beef burrito.  It's pretty tasty.  Hardly anything ever happens up to this point in the trip, and today has been just as uneventful.  As a matter of fact, the drive remains this way right through Santa Barbara, with the exception of a little slowing due to the freeway construction going on there.  We're off to a fast start.

We love the view of the ocean as we drive between Ventura and Santa Barbara.  The Channel Islands in the distance are marred only by the occasional oil rig.

Turning Northward

A few years back, we escaped Southern California during a time when several wildfires were burning in different locations.  We headed west on the Ventura Freeway with the smoke and yellow sky as our constant companion.  It wasn't until we turned northward on the freeway in Gaviota that we found relief, and it was instantaneous.  We now refer to the rest area there as the "clean air place."  It's the moment when we know we're in wine country.

The countryside is beautiful, looking like a piece of camouflage cloth.  The olive drab hills dotted with varying shades of green grass, shrubs and trees are among my favorite landscapes.

The Produce Stands

We always like to make a few stops for fresh produce while we're in wine country.  The first one occurs at Nojoqui Park.  The place officially named Classic Organic is known as "peace barn" due to the huge peace sign installed on the side of the barn.  It's a self-serve vegetable stand that works on the honor system.  The prices are marked.  You take what you want and leave the appropriate amount in the barrel.  You may have to nudge "Shadow" the black cat out of the way to reach the slot in the barrelhead.  The cat is always there, always asleep.  The produce is routinely beautiful at the peace barn.  On this trip, the butter lettuce nearly made Denise cry.  The chives were not quite so moving, but we bought them anyway.  Remember to bring enough small bills.  they don't make change.

Blueberries are just up the road.  Back on the northbound 101 for only a minute or so, and quickly off at the sign for blueberries.  We get three packages of berries and a blueberry lemon bread which looks completely, insanely delicious.

North on the 101 again, this time passing Santa Rosa Road.  We have often turned there to visit some wonderful wineries - Mosby, Lafond, Alma Rosa - and turn instead on Highway 246 to Solvang.  It seems like the traffic is nearly always slow through that little village of Scandanavian kitsch now.  If you're here at lunchtime, try Root 246, a wonderful restaurant in the Hotel Corque on Alisal Road.  We are not enjoying that stop today.  We turn north on Alamo Pintado, headed for strawberries.

The strawberry stand across from Buttonwood Winery always seems to have the biggest, sweetest strawbs we've ever seen.  We buy a whole flat of them, knowing we'll never eat them all.  We'll give some away back at home. 

Wine Ahoy!

After loading up on various fruits at the strawberry stand, we press onward.  North through Los Olivos - without stopping to taste wine! gasp! - we hit the 154, then the 101 again for another half hour or so of northbound to Santa Maria.  We exit the 101 at Clark and turn left to go to Old Orcutt.  I have in mind that I'll stop in and visit Dave Corey of Core Wine Company .  We have only met through Twitter, and I'd like a face-to-face.  I'll spare you the wrong turns and u-turns I made and simply say you're there before you know it. 

A fully functional plan might have been nice here, as the Core Wine tasting room had not Dave, but wife Becky in charge.  Dave was on his way there - maybe - but he did not arrive before I had to press on.  I hope we'll meet soon.

We retrace our route to the other side of the 101 and wind our way toKenneth Volk Vineyards.   Here's the part of the trip for which you'll want to fire up that GPS app.  Once you leave the 101 here at the northern end of the Foxen Canyon Wine Trail, landmarks become few and uncertain.

At the Volk tasting room, two busloads of inexplicably weirdly-dressed people are just leaving.  Ken Volk, however, is in Paso Robles at his other tasting room.  Had he been there, I was told, he would surely have poured for me some of the Touriga National and the Alicante which are oh-so-close to being released.  I settle for the truly fantastic wines Volk has already released, and I'm not disappointed.  I would love to taste that Touriga National, though!

It's getting to be almost time to head back already.  We bail on the notion to backtrack south on Foxen Canyon Road for dates at Rancho Sisquoc and Tres Hermanas.  Deciding to head back to the highway, we see Riverbench Vineyard and Winery along the way.  Oh alright, just one more stop.  If you insist.

Riverbench has mostly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir to offer, and they are quite good.  Lots of folks are outside enjoying a nice summer day, too.

Homeward Bound

There's something nice about heading home from a day trip, but there's also something sad about it.  On the one hand, you've had a manageable amount of fun and you'll soon be home in the comfort of your pleasant little domicile.  On the other, it would be nice to just keep on having fun, and continue the little mini-vacation a while longer.  Other obligations call, and so we do what level-headed people do.  We head home.  Doing what level-headed people do does not always come naturally to us.  Today, we're about ready to head back.

It's a pretty good trip on the southbound 101 out of the Santa Maria Valley going towards Santa Barbara.  Flying southbound through Montecito, Summerland and Carpenteria, we look at those poor folks sitting still on the northbound side.  We both spend the whole week talking about those situations as traffic reporters, so we don't kick it around too much in the car.  We breathe a sigh of relief it's not us in that backup.

A pleasant ride home found us stopping in Camarillo again at the Old New York Deli & Bakery Co.  They must imagine we have no life at all.  They probably think, "Those old weirdos ate here twice in one day."  Let 'em think what they want.  We're not that old.  Or that weird.



Feel free to comment here.  Maybe you have a story about wine country travel you'd like to share.  We'd love to hear it.

ST. LUCAS TORRONTES

Fridays were made for treats.  After a full week of doing what we do to try and stay two steps ahead of the bill collectors, we deserve a treat now and then.  I like wine treats - a glass of good wine in a spot that's perfect for the experience.

My most recent Friday wine was enjoyed at a relatively new addition to the stretch of Culver City's Washington Boulevard, just a bit west of La Cienega.  Sublime Food Lounge hasn't been open too long, but what a nice little spot!  The walls are actually sliding doors which open all the way, so the beautiful day spills right inside.  There are a couple of tables right on the sidewalk, too, but sitting indoors is very much like being on the sidewalk.  When traffic is heavy, sidewalking it isn't all that great, but during the afternoon, the great outdoors is a great place for lunch or a well-deserved Friday wine treat.  Even if it is the great urban outdoors.

Sublime's wine list is interesting. It's got whites on one side and reds on the flipside, with subdivisions to make it easy to choose a wine for the mood in which you find yourself.  On this day, I felt "crisp."  The list features plenty of boutique wines from all over the world.  On the white side of the page, I had a tough time finding a wine from California.  So I went with Argentina

St. Lucas wines come from the Barrancas region of Argentina's Mendoza Valley.  They appear to be imported by a company in the southern California town of Santa Fe Springs.

Their Torrontes is a 100% varietal wine fermented in stainless steel and registering 13% abv.

On the nose I get a floral component I like to call "honeysuckle," with a fairly intense pear juice aroma.  I'm tasting pears, too, with a nice zesty citrus component.  There are minerals and a very nice acidity in this wine, but it's not zesty enough to alter the full, round mouthfeel.

ALMA ROSA STA. RITA HILLS PINOT BLANC 2007

Enjoying the fruits of your labor, as the saying goes, is alright.  But it's not as good as enjoying the fruits of someone else's labor.  Especially when that someone has a 40-year track record of turning out some exceedingly good fruit for his effort.

Alma Rosa Winery is owned and run by Richard and Thekla Sanford.  Richard Sanford planted grapes in the Santa Rita Hills in 1970, according to the winery's website.  That made him a true pioneer, and it may have made him a lonely guy, too.  He was one of the only grape growers in the SRH back then.

Sanford's estate vineyards were the first ones in Santa Barbara County to receive organic certification from the California Certified Organic Farmers.  His wines are said to be known for their high acid and great structure.

Alma Rosa's Santa Rita Hills Pinot Blanc shows a soft golden hue in the glass.  It sees brief oak in used barrels, so the oak influence is somewhat restrained.   

I get honeysuckle on the nose.  Nectarines are there, too, with a bit of wet rock, but just a touch. Some vanilla and spice notes dance around in the background.

This Pinot Blanc has a very creamy mouthfeel, and buttery, too.  Quite full and mellow it is, and yet the acidity is bracing at the same time.  Flavors of pears and a hint of citrus are in the taste, with a trace of cantaloupe.

There is no malolactic fermentation used in the production of this wine, which is usually used to produce a full feel in the mouth.  This wine certainly fills the mouth nicely on its own.  On the palate, the texture of the wood is noticeable, but not bothersome at all.  It's at 14.3% abv and sells for $18 at the winery, where I bought mine.

By the way, serve it next to a bowl of nuts.  It's great with peanuts.

ROSÉ FOR SUMMER

Don't rely on supermarkets for your summer rosés. 

My grocery (Ralph's) actually has a fairly decent wine section, but only a handful of pink offerings.  On the shelf there I found La Vieille Ferme, Red Bicyclette, Mouton Cadet, a Spanish rosado which has slipped from my memory and the lone California entry, Ironstone Xpression.

There is also the usual assortment of White Zinfandel.

It doesn't take too much effort to locate some really wonderful rosés that will make your warm-weather entertaining an instant hit.

I like to buy local for most of my wine, and it's not a bad drive from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara County.

Clos Pepe in Lompoc, with vineyards in the Santa Rita Hills, has a rosé of Pinot Noir that is fantastic.

Fiddlehead Cellars in Lompoc produces a rosé of Pinot Noir they call "Pink Fiddle" that is full-bodied and quite refreshing.

Fontes and Phillips' "Panky" is made from Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah from Camp 4 Vineyard in Santa Ynez.  It's bone dry and complex.

Shoestring Winery in Solvang does a rosé that's mainly Syrah with some Grenache and "a splash of Sangiovese for color."

If those are too hard to find, stop in for a visit with your neighborhood wine dealer and get some professional help.  We could all use some of that every now and then.  With summer just around the corner, any wine store should already have a great supply of pinks in stock.

Here are some rosés which should be widely available at wine stores in many areas:

Domaine Begude Pinot Noir Vin de Pays d'Oc Rosé 2009 - A salmon-colored effort from Languedoc with a crisp minerality.
Domaine de la Fouquette "Rosée d'Aurore" Côtes de Provence Rosé 2009 - Made of Grenache, Cinsault and Rolle (you may know it in Italian as Vermentino).
La Gatte Rosé, Bordeaux 2008 - Yes, Bordeaux!  It's Merlot.
Cep "Nobles Ranch" Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir Rosé 2008 - Cep is a second label of the noted Peay Vineyards.
Crios de Susana Balbo Rosé of Malbec Mendoza 2009 - Argentine.  Any wine with Balbo's name on it is worth a try.
Beckmen Purisima Mountain Vineyard Grenache Rosé 2009 - Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre are the grapes in this one.
Francis Ford Coppola Sofia Rosé 2009 - It's a rich, pink color and dry. 
Chateau Ste Michelle Dry Rosé 2007 - A crisp and fruity Washington State pink.
Ironstone Xpression 2008 - It won a Gold Medal at the California State Fair last year.

Please feel free to leave a comment if I failed to mention your favorite rosé.

DOMAINE ALFRED CHAMISAL VINEYARD SYRAH EDNA VALLEY 2004

The Edna Valley wine country near San Luis Obispo has been on my mind a lot recently.  It's a favorite spot of mine in California's Central Coast.  There's plenty of beautiful rolling countryside full of vineyards which produce grapes that are made into some pretty incredible wines.

I don't know if this one is even available anymore.  I had a bottle of it several years ago, when the place was known as Domaine Alfred.  The winery has since reverted to their original name of Chamisal VineyardsVineyards.  Even though this wine was produced in the Alfred days, the grapes came from Chamisal's namesake vineyard.  Here are my notes on this memorable Syrah:

"A nose of very dark fruit promises only a bit of what ends up on the palate.  A very earthy, pungent taste made up of dark fruit, leather and spices - and a lot of each.  It comes at you leading with the earthiness, but a powerful spiciness joins in on the taste buds.  There's quite a lengthy finish, too - one that you wish would never end."

The Now And Zin Wine Blog

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Randy Fuller

TANGENT SAUVIGNON BLANC EDNA VALLEY 2008

It was dark, drizzly and cold in Los Angeles at lunchtime.  Ahh, perfect weather for the middle of May!  I tend to shy away from white wine in colder weather, but we were at Itacho for Japanese food, so I thought I'd give the wine list a quick look-see.

Two wines down I saw "Tangent," so I stopped and ordered.  Tangent is a favorite of mine from the Central Coast's Edna Valley.  The winery specializes in "alternative white wines." Their list includes such offbeat varietal wines as Grenache Blanc, Albarino, Pinot Blanc and Ecclestone, their white blend.

In that context Sauvignon Blanc may seem positively ordinary, but Tangent's Sauvignon Blanc is not ordinary.

Tangent uses no oak or malolactic fermentation in any of their wines in order to let the fruit stand on its own.  Winemaker Christian Roguenant harvests the fruit in three stages and then employs a number of different lots throught production.  His aim is to bring the styles of France and New Zealand together in one wine.

The grapes for Tangent's Sauvignon Blanc come from Edna Valley's Paragon Vineyard.  The vines have been there since 1973,  which makes them among the oldest Sauvignon Blanc vines in the Central Coast.

The wine carries an alcohol number of 13.5% abv.  It has a metal screwcap - as do all of Tangent's wines - and lists for $13.

The wine was served ice cold, which I do not prefer because it inhibits the bouquet and flavors.  Also, the weather wasn't exactly reminding me of summertime, so a lightly chilled wine would have been nice on this day.

Its color is lightly tinted, and the nose not all that grassy.  Minerals are apparent in the aromas, the scent of wet rocks making a big play.  The taste - which I expect to be full of grapefruit - is more heavy with green apples and tropical notes.  There is a bit of citrus in the profile, but it's not in the forefront.  the acidity is good and the wine provides a nice middle-weight mouthfeel.

I had it with Japanese food and found that it went very well with the spicy tuna roll, a sweet eggplant dish and mushrooms with broccoli.  I wasn't too wild about the way it paired with the freshwater eel sushi, however.

CASA PACIFICA ANGELS WINE AND FOOD FESTIVAL 2010

Wine festivals are so much fun all on their own.  But it’s great when the tasting and sampling is done for a good cause.  The 17th edition of the Casa Pacifica Angels Wine and Food Festival is coming up Sunday June 6, 2010 from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.

This charitable wine and food event was voted the number one cultural event in Ventura County for two years running.  The wine of California and the cuisine of an area stretching from Santa Barbara to the Conejo Valley will be spotlighted.  Over 100 wineries and breweries will be on hand, as will a host of restaurants, caterers and bakeries.

Here are the particulars:

The Casa Pacifica Angels Wine and Food Festival
17th Annual
Sunday June 6, 2010
1:00 – 5:00 p.m.
California State University Channel Islands
1 University Drive
Camarillo, California 93012
805.484.7144
Cost:   Tickets are available online at $90 each until June 5th and $100 at the door. VIP tickets are available for $200 each and include perks like valet parking and a special lounge.

Proceeds from the festival benefit Casa Pacifica , the Camarillo-based crisis-care and residential treatment center for children.  Casa Pacifica has been serving their community since 1994, and some 430 children and their families are helped every day by this organization’s programs.  Please visit Casa Pacifica to find out more about them and the good work they do.

TOLOSA CHARDONNAY 2006

Meandering through some old tasting notes a while back, I came across a wine from Edna Valley near San Luis Obispo.  Normally, I like the minerality of the whites from Edna Valley.  This trip I came home with Tolosa Winery's Chardonnay.  They make a "no oak" version, too, but this one was their Estate brand.  Here are the notes I made at the time:

"The label shows the name is Tolosa Chardonnay, Estate, Edna Ranch, Edna Valley.  It's amazing there's room left for anything else!  The brown and gold label also shows abv at 14.3%.  From the coastal hills of San Luis Obispo, their estate vineyards are sustainably farmed.  The blurb on the back label explains that we can expect to find floral, white peach and creme brulee aromas and a rich palate framed by crisp acidity and minerality.  I'm sold.  The bottle cost about $18 at the winery a few weeks ago.

"A wonderfully oaky presence is there, very rich but not over the top.  I can smell those minerals they advertised.  The other notes are somewhat hindered, I suppose by the chill.  There's a little hint of the grassy kind of aroma you expect in Sauvignon Blanc - not strong, very faint, and quite unexpected.  I'm intrigued.  The wine is a pale, golden color in the glass.

"I've got the wood on the palate, but in a very reserved way.  It's fairly rich-tasting, but not too creamy.  The fruit is there, peaches and lemons.  I get a very clean, citrusy sort of feel from it.  More than anything I get the minerals.  Really crisp and quite appealing, this may not be a Chardonnay for Chardonnay haters, but it's awfully close.  I liked it with grilled chicken, and liked it even more with Kalamata olives."