The Music of Wine

If you think very much at all about the wine you drink, you no doubt make a lot of comparisons in your senses.  "Has a greenish hue" or "smells like violets" or "tastes like wet rocks" probably come to mind occasionally.  I love music, and I started thinking about what musical instruments I would match with the wines I taste.

A light and berry-flavored rosé might be well suited to the dancing notes of the piccolo.  Champagne - and all the other sparklers - would have to be a glissando on the harp.

The full, rich notes of the cello is a natural for a creamy, buttery Chardonnay, while its stainless steel brethren says "violin" to me.

Sauvignon Blanc seems like a clarinet, the way Pete Fountain played it.  I like the oboe for a rich and complex Pinot Noir, while Torrontes tastes like a flute to me - preferably the one heard in "The Girl From Ipanema."

The trumpet would be a perfect match for a big, brassy Zinfandel.  The refined French horn could represent a smokey and lush Merlot.

Big, bold sounds would have to signify big, bold Cabernet Sauvignon, so I'd match Cabs with the tympani and the bassoon together.  Port strikes me as a tuba kind of wine, while the many facets of Rhone blends would glide easily from one to another on the slide of a trombone.

The next time you're tasting a wine you like, think about what sounds the wine conjures up, and make your own kind of music.  Please feel free to comment here with any discoveries or revelations that surface.  Now, I think I'll open a nice Sonoma County trumpet.

"They Got This Recession On" Wines, Part 10

Shale Ridge Syrah 2005

If you're going to try and bust a recession, you might as well bring out the big guns.  A $4 bottle of wine would be a huge gun in a war on recessionary wine prices - if it's good.  This label belongs to Lockwood Vineyard in San Lucas, in Monterey County.  The name comes from the shale found in their soil, no doubt.  The grapes are all estate grown, as is Lockwood's custom.  I'm swirling right now.  Let's taste.

The wine sits in the glass a fairly deep shade of red, but it is not opaque.  There is quite a bit of heat on the nose, but also quite a bit of blackberry and currant.  Pepper arises on the palate, and the spice seems a bit much until after a half hour or so when the tannins have settled.  The dark fruit tastes good in the mouth and lingers a bit on the finish.  I didn't really expect a revelatory experience for $4, and I wouldn't say I had one while drinking this wine.  I did, however, find it to be very flavorful and aromatic, with a complexity that grew as time passed.  After an hour or so in the glass, I was actually quite pleased with it.  I did not try it with food, but something tells me it would pair well with a pork chop or a hamburger.

Variety:  100% Syrah

Appellation:  California > Central Coast > Monterey

Vineyard:  Lockwood Vineyard

Vintage: 2005

Alcohol Level:  13.5%

Price:  $4 on sale

Acquisition disclaimer:  Purchased on sale by the author

Explain the meaning of the title of this piece?

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:

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 @ $75 each until April 15th, $90 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.

Surfrider Edna Valley Chardonnay 2007

I made a Saturday jaunt recently to the Rosenthal Estate Wines tasting room, on PCH in Malibu.  It was one of those sunny, 75 degree winter days Southern California is known for.  It was a perfect day for a trip into Malibu's 26 miles of beachfront property.

The tasting room seems casual enough, with seating outside and a small bar indoors.  The room has a rustic and funky appearance that I really like in a tasting room.  I remember tasting Rosenthal wines as well as their Surfrider line.  That's about all I can tell you, as the notes I took never made it out of my pocket.  They did make it into the washing machine, where they were rendered unrecognizable as paper.  I am able to tell you that I liked everything I tasted that day, and that a bottle of the Surfrider Chardonnay came home with me.

It's a pale straw-colored wine.  The nose features a fragrant show of mainly tropical fruit and flowers.  The palate is not belabored by wood, although it is 30% barrel-fermented, with five months in oak.  In fact, it feels quite clean and crisp in the mouth. The fruit comes from Edna Valley, not Rosenthal's Malibu estate, which may explain some of the minerality.  I even noticed a slight effervecsence on the second day which I didn't see in the previous night's glass.  I'm a big fan of Chardonnay with a hint of oak, but I also love a refreshingly unoaked variety.  Surfrider falls somewhere in between.  I'm glad I could hang five - fingers, that is - on a Surfrider Chardonnay.

The Surfrider wines support the Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit environmental outfit concerned with preserving our oceans and the beaches upon which they lap.  A donation is made for each bottle sold.

Professional surfer Strider Wasilewski is featured - in a wave-leaping action shot - on the label, if that makes a difference to you.

Winemaker:  Rosenthal

Variety:  Chardonnay

Appellation:  California > Central Coast > Edna Valley

Vintage:  2007

Alcohol Level:  14.1% abv

Price:  $21

Acquisition disclaimer:  Purchased by the author

Cycles Gladiator Syrah

I was awaiting Denise's arrival at Sushi Dan the other night, and as I perused the wine list an old friend popped up - Cycles Gladiator Syrah.  Denise had discovered this one for us at one of Wally's Tent Sales a while back.  I liked it then, and I hoped I'd like it this time, too.  I suspect it is the 2008 vintage they are serving at the restaurant, but I failed to check on that.

This wine from the Hahn Estate of Soledad, CA, takes its name from an old French bicycle company. The whole crew is apparently bicycle-crazy.

The wine sits ruby-red in the glass and smells of dark fruit and pepper.  Blackberry and cassis greet the palate with notes of chocolate and a little white pepper.  It's pretty smooth, but it has a nice acidity.  The finish is a little off - a slightly medicinal edge crept in faintly.  The fruit rocks while it's in the mouth, though.  It's a very tasty wine for the price.

Variety:  Syrah
Appellation:  California > Central Coast
Price:  $10
Acquisition disclaimer:  Purchased by the author

Orin Swift "The Prisoner" 2007

A recent - and rare - excursion into late night dining took us to Greenblatt's Deli on Sunset.  It was so late I did no dining at all.  But while Denise enjoyed a turkey sandwich, I enjoyed a glass of Orin Swift "The Prisoner."  It was about $12.50 a glass, which isn't bad considering it's a $35 bottle.

Half Zinfandel, half five other grapes, this big blend packs a punch.  The fruit is right up front.  I don't know if the Zinfandel qualifies as ""old vine," but it tastes like it does.  There's a huge pencil lead profile from the Cab, a lovely lushness and a bit of black pepper from the Syrah, darker features from the PS and complex shadings from the Charbono and Grenache.

Variety:  50% Zinfandel, 24% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Syrah, 9% Petite Sirah,  2% Charbono, 1% Grenache
Appellation:  California > Napa Valley

Vintage:  2007
Alcohol Level:  15.1%
Price:  $35 sugg. retail; $12.50 per glass
Acquisition disclaimer:  purchased by the glass by author

Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Brut

There were still a few bottles of holiday sparklers knocking around Wine Central, so I decided to pop one while watching Super Bowl XLIV.  It figured that as one of those "Geaux Saints" fans, I'd probably end the game crying into my beer, so I thought a little cheering into my sparkler would be nice in case it got out of hand before The Who performed.

This Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Brut is a 375ml bottle leftover from the holiday stretch.  I'm told if your holiday sparklers are still around in February, you're either very good at conserving or you're not drinking enough.  Either way, this one makes me happy the cork is popped.

A nose of rich, yeasty toast and malt greets me - a formidable nose.  It's a nose that makes its presence known.  Apple on the palate gets really creamy.  The wine has a huge mouthfeel, almost a beery sort of feel.  It is produced by methode Champenoise - "fermented in this bottle," as the label says.  I don't have any snack food to eat with it, but it feels so full in my mouth it's sort of a meal in itself.  A good meal.

Now, if the Saints can come back and win the Super Bowl, it will be just cause to pop the cork on another sparkler!

Variety:  85% Pinot Noir 15% Chardonnay
Appellation:  California > Sonoma County > Sonoma Valley

Vintage:  NV
Alcohol Level:  12.9%
Price:  $7 (half bottle)
Acquisition disclaimer:  Purchased by the author

Loosen Brothers Dr L Riesling 2008

I can still see the shadow of Groundhog Day, which means in six more weeks, spring will come and bring with it porch-fests full of wonderfully crisp white wines and lip-smacking roses.  That's the plan, anyway.  In Los Angeles, it seldom works out that way.  The real hot weather doesn't arrive until July, maybe August, and  if the morning fog gets on a roll it may be too cool for short sleeves until then.

At some point the weather will warm up enough to make the allure of a refrigerated wine out on the porch too hard to resist.  I don't prefer wine that's refrigerated.  If the wine is too cold, its aromas and flavors are bound up in that icy liquid.  But if it's hot enough outside, cold wine seems just fine.

I like Sauvignon Blanc, a nice rose, a white Rhone blend on the porch, but as long as I'm daydreaming about spring's arrival, I'll daydream that I'm out there in my favorite Adirondack chair with Denise and a cold glass of Dr. L.

Dr. Ernst Loosen's Mosel Valley Riesling is a prime candidate for the porch.  After pouring up a pale golden color, it shows an ever-so-slight effervescence.  Those tiny, tiny bubbles may not be enough to get Don Ho going, but they look mighty refreshing to me. 

There's not as much mineral on the nose as I like in a white wine, but there is a trace of that slate soil in there.  A whiff of pears also shows itself.  On the palate, it's fruity but dry.  There's a very refreshing sense to Dr. L, and nice, full feel in the mouth.  You don't have to wait until warm weather to enjoy this Riesling, by the way.  I drank it unchilled with a cold rain falling outside.  Delightful.



Variety:  Riesling
Appellation:  Germany > Mosel-Saar-Ruser
Vintage:  2008
Alcohol Level:  8.5% abv
Price:  $10
Acquisition disclaimer: Purchased by the author

Tasting Event: Stars of Santa Barbara

Ian Blackburn's wineshow company, Learn About Wine, produced another wonderful and well-attended tasting event at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills.  On February 3rd, 2010 the spotlight fell on around 40 notable Santa Barbara County wine producers as Stars of Santa Barbara had its seventh annual affair.

I have great fondness for wines from California's Central Coast, in particular from Santa Barbara County, so I anticipated this event like a kid does Christmas.  I was not disappointed.  The wineries represented hailed from the Santa Barbara area, from the city's Urban Wine Trail northward as far as the Foxen Canyon Wine Trail.

If you have done much traveling on the backroads of the Santa Ynez Valley and the Santa Rita Hills, a number of the following names will be familiar.  This is a short list of what I think are highlights of the event.

Buttonwood presented a couple of wines I found to be curious.  Their Cabernet Franc seemed positively bright, unusual in a variety which is noted for its darkness and density.  The Syrah Rose shocked me.  Blind, I would have sworn it was Sauvignon Blanc.  That profile came through rather prominently in the taste, too.  Winemaker Karen Steinwachs told me I wasn't the first person to tell her that.  She offered an explanation that "the Syrah grows next to the Sauvignon Blanc."  I wondered if maybe they had been harvested on a windy day.

Coquelicot poured a blend called "Monamour" which has a pencil-point graphite aspect that's very appealing.  I love their Sangiovese, wonderfully dense and dark with a very full mouthfeel.

Fontes and Phillips offered a number of wines which, unfortunately, were kept a little too cold.  This kept the aromas and tastes rather hidden, and was most problematic in the whites.  The rose "Panky" was affected as well, and that was a shame.  I know it to be an exceptionally good wine.  Their Pinot Noir, "La Encantada," had lovely cherry notes.

Foxen had a number of wines to pour, but I only tried the 7200 "Volpino," a Sangiovese/Merlot blend.  It was spicy, bright and fruity, a complete joy.

Jonata winemaker Matt Dees has crafted some wines that deserve attention.  I tried these first at the tasting, but they were so good I wished I had saved them for last.  A Cabernet Franc with stunning density, a Cabernet Sauvignon with the grace of a ballet dancer and the heft of a sumo wrestler, a luscious Syrah and Todos, a great kitchen-sink blend that brings the best of about 7 different grapes to the table and makes a feast of them.

Lucas & Lewellen brought a Chenin Blanc with a great, nutty nose and a Petite Sirah that smelled almost like a chocolate bar.

Qupe shared a table with AuBon Climat, so there was a fairly large crowd around them most of the time.  I did get in close enough to sample the Marsanne/Roussanne blend, which opened with a citrusy tartness and finished smooth and almost creamy.  The "Bien Nacido Hillside Estate" Roussanne smelled nutty and beautifully pungent.  It, too, finished quite nicely.

Tantara poured a Chardonnay with a full mouthfeel and a strong wood profile and a Piont Noir with a flinty nose.

Proceeds of a silent auction benefitted the TJ Martell Foundation and Cancer Research at Children's Hospital Los Angeles.

"They Got This Recession On" Wines, Part 9

I've been knocking back quite a bit of cheap wine lately, not by design but by chance.  Fortunately for me, the wines haven't been all that bad as a rule, and I haven't been chained to them.  Besides, drinking cheap wine gives me a chance to use the title line for this series yet again. 

I was talking with my friend Dominick the other day - he's a wine novice - and he asked me if there was a correlation between price and quality.  I explained to him that the chances of running across a poorly made wine are probably greater on the bottom shelf than the top.  But I also explained that the best wine in the world is the one you like best.  Your personal palate is the one and only arbiter of whether or not a wine is "good."  If it costs $5, great.  If it costs $500, I hope you can afford to have it as often as you like.

Montpellier Vineyards Pinot Noir 2008

I bought this wine on the strength of a restaurant tasting recently.  Denise actually selected it, but I signed off on it, too.  Now I honestly can't recall what I liked about this wine.  Maybe its earthy, herbal character attracted me.  Possibly it was the cola notes.  Now, however, I'm struck - almost as if slapped in the face - with a medicinal edge for which I have no fondness.  The fruit didn't materialize the way I remembered at the tasting. As a parting shot, I'm left with a bitter taste on the finish.


Variety:  Pinot Noir
Appellation:  California
Vintage:  2008
Alcohol Level:  12.5% abv
Price:  $7
Acquisition disclaimer:  Purchased by the author

Loyola Marymount Wine Classic 2010

The field house at Loyola Marymount University was the setting for the 2010 Loyola Wine Classic.  The crowd that pushed its way into the cavernous gymnasium couldn't have been more excited if it were the Final Four being held there.  A gigantic crowd surged around the perimeter of the structure, tasting some of the finest wines available in California and exchanging notes with friends about what should be tried next.

So great was the throng that it was difficult for me to push toward the tables and have a taste myself.  Once there, it was difficult to maintain position for more than a couple of hurried samples.  I did manage to let myself be carried along with the crowd often enough to sample quite a few wines, most of which were exemplary.  It was impossible to use the crowd as a barometer of what was most popular - every table seemed to have a waiting line snaking away from it.

For what it's worth, William Cole Vineyards appeared to be the first winery to run out of their supply.  The pourer chirped, "I usually am."  Is it because so many people lined up to sample, because he poured large tastes or because he simply didn't bring as much as everyone else?  I don't know.  Neither did the student who was working the floor.  We had a bit of a laugh over it, though.

Here are the notable wines I tried, which is to say, every wine I tried.  Everything was good.  My favorites are noted as such and are in italics.



Arns Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 - big, bold nose - slightly medicinal notes

Cafaro Cellars Merlot 2006 - nice, toasty nose - great fruit

Falcone Family Vineyards Annate NV - Syrah/Cab Sauvignon/Petite Sirah blend  46/34/20% - big Paso Robles nose and flavor

Foxen Vineyards Range 30 West 2006 -  Merlot/Cab Sauvignon - tons of earth, very smooth - a fave

Foxen Chardonnay Bien Nacido 2008 - big nose, sort of grassy - rish taste

Miner Family Winery The Oracle 2005 - Bordeaux blend of 5 grapes - v intense, smooth as silk - a fave

Ortman Family Vineyards Paso Robles Sangiovese 2007 - bright cherry nose, cherry coke palate - a fave

Ortman Edna Valley Chardonnay - big, rich nose - outdoorsy taste

Paradigm Winery Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 - great nose - lushly earthy - a fave

Red Cap Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 and 2007 - both with tons of graphite and both delicious

Saddleback Cellars Viognier 2008 - huge floral nose, tropical palate - a fave

Lane Tanner Haka by Labrynth Tempranillo 2008 - very smooth and fruity

Lane Tanner Haka by Labrynth Petite Sirah 2008 - dark and spicy nose and taste - a fave

Lane Tanner Haka by Labrynth Free Bird 2008 - Merlot/Tempranillo blend with traces of Petit Verdot and Cab S - great fruit

Vinoce Vineyard - Cabernet Franc/Cab Suvignon and Merlot 2006 - fab nose, wonderfully dense - a fave

WesMar Winery Pinot Noir Balletto Vineyard 2007 - mellow, tea-like flavor

White Rock Vineyards Claret 2005 - wonderful graphite and penetrating dryness - a fave

ZD Wines Chardonnay 2008 - grapes from 4 regions - nose like a campfire

Pasadena PinotFest 2010, 2nd Annual

I made a sort of "wine resolution" at the beginning of the year to drink more Pinot Noir.  To that end, this month I have attended not one but two big tasting events featuring Pinot Noir.  The most recent, the Pasadena PinotFest, was held at the University Club of Pasadena on January 30.  I had not been to the venerable facility since my friends Jerry and Robin had their wedding reception there.  It was a jumpin' joint that night, but the wine crowd got the room rockin', too.

A full house made their way from winery table to winery table, stopping to refresh their palates at a major cheese station, a carving table for assorted meats and a wonderful island where succulent braised short ribs were served atop a pile of cheesy grits.  Pleasure abounded from wall to wall.

Nearly 50 wineries were represented, and not all of them felt obliged to restrict their pours to Pinot Noir.  Quite a few brought Chardonnays and Syrahs with them, while I did see one Pinot Gris and a rose.  It was a Pinot Noir rose, however.



Although the room was crowded, I was able to make it in good fashion up and down the aisles.  At no time was it difficult to get close enough to the pourers to hear what they had to say about the wines.  In fact, at an event earlier in the month, I had some difficulty getting close to the Clos Pepe table.  This time around, winemaker Wes Hagen was able to devote his entire attention to my questions for several minutes.  That's probably not the way he would have preferred it, but it worked very well for me.



Hagen poured some of his prized rose to start.  He explained that for this pink wine, his grapes are taken a full six weeks before other Pinot growers begin harvesting.  He feels he can get full fruit flavor without letting the grapes possibly get overripe.  I agree.  The Clos Pepe rose has one of the best fruit presences I can remember tasting in a pink wine.  Moreover, his Pinot Noir seems almost like an extension of the rose rather than a different wine entirely.


Another big favorite for me was Row 11 Russian River Valley 2007.  The spices were so delicious this one really did make my eyes open wide.  According to the pourer, winemaker Richard de los Reyes makes New World Pinot Noir by selecting the "best vineyards, in the best appellations and taking the best rows."  She explained that's where the name, Row 11, comes from.  Reyes can walk any vineyard in California and select any row he likes.  He apparently likes Row 11.



I was also taken with the Windstream 2008 Pinot.  It's a big, floral, rich wine which is, I'm told, "the winemaker's baby."  Winemaker Anthony Riboli, of the Los Angeles winemaking Riboli Family, really impressed me with this wine.



The Pasadena PinotFest served as a fundraiser for Hillsides, a Pasadena-based nonprofit organization doing good work for Southern California's children.  If you weren't able to help by attending, please click on their name and explore other opportunities to help.

Here are some of the wines I sampled (all are Pinot Noir):

Ampelos Lambda 2006 - very good

Ampelos Rho 2006 Barrel Select - excellent, bright and earthy on nose and palate

Ampelos Fiddlestix Vineyard 2007 - subdued fruit, somewhat green

Alma Rosa  Santa Rita Hills 2007 - nice and earthy

Alma Rosa La Encantada Vineyard 2005 - wild nose, got a lot of attention from other tasters while I was there

Badge 2006 - complex nose, spicy taste

Baileyana Grand Fire Peak Cuvee 2007 - earthy and full

Cargasacchi Point Concepcion Salsipuedes 2008 - barnyard nose, nice mineral profile

Cargasacchi Estate, Cargasacchi-Jalama Vineyard 2007 - brighter and more vibrant than Concepcion

Clos Pepe Rose 2009 - strawberry, 11.5% abv, great fruit presence, very "real"

Clos Pepe 2006 - like and "extension" of the rose, darker and fuller

Clos Pepe 2007 - even fruitier and fuller than '06

Derby 2006 - very good nose

Ken Brown Santa Maria Valley 2007 - violets

Ken Brown Sta. Rita Hills 2007 - great sense of earth

Ken Brown Clos Pepe Vineyard 2007 - dark and brooding

Loring 2008 - like candy on the nose

Loring Gary's Vineyard 2008 - herbaceous, bright and delicious

Marimar Don Miguel Vineyard 2006 - lovely and dark

Marimar Dona Margarita Vineyard 2006 - big nose, subdued fruit

Row 11 Russian River 2007 - OMG! great spices

Stephen Ross Chorro Creek 2007 - nice minerals

Tin House 2005 - very nice earth, big, sourced in Edna Valley

Windstream 2008 - very big taste, floral and rich, "winemaker's baby"

Off The Beaten Path: SoCal Wine Tasting

Southern California has a wealth of wine tasting opportunities.  No matter where you are in Southern California, you probably have a nice tasting event coming up in the next few days in or near your neighborhood.  Let's fire up the GPS and get off the well-traveled trail to explore a few hidden gems of Southern California wine tasting.

Glendale - Rosso Wine Shop
3459 1/2 North Verdugo Road
Glendale, CA 91208
818.330.9130
Rosso is a small but interesting wine store which carries not only the expected Italian, but also French, Spanish and California wines that are hand picked by the owner.  "Everyday wines that won't break the bank" is how it's summed up on the website.  Rosso's website is a worthy read, because it contains links to corkage fees for a number of Southern California restaurants, a list of Farmers Markets and a slew of wine region maps.  Rosso's tastings are held on Fridays and Saturdays under expert guidance.  Any questions you may have will be answered in knowledgeable fashion.  The tastings generally only cost $10.  By the way, if you're hungry when you stop in, La Cabanita Mexican Restaurant is just two doors down.  Bag two birds and only park the car once.

San Dimas - San Dimas Wine Shop and Tasting Room
225 W Bonita Avenue
San Dimas, CA 91773-3008
909.971.9425
Wine tasting is not so much an event here as it is a natural occurance.  As long as the store is open, so are the wine bottles.  There's a different menu each week which changes on Tuesdays and usually costs in the neighborhood of $12 to $15.  Each Sunday they offer a different bubbly by the glass.  Fine wines, micro-brewed beer and artisan cheeses are revered at this full-service wine store.  It's a good place to know about the next time you're in beautiful downtown San Dimas.

San Pedro - Off The Vine
491 6th Street
Suite 103
San Pedro, CA  90731
310.831.1551
Michael and Alison Koth started from scratch with this little dream of theirs, and they have made it blossom into an integral part of their community.  Tastings are held Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, and most are themed.  Relax in The Map Room, get a cheese plate if you like, and take a tour of a wine region, variety or style.  There's no hurry, by the way.  The tastings last for hours.  Off The Vine also offers occasional dinners, tours and cruises tailored for wine lovers.  They have partnered with local restaurants that charge no corkage on wines purchased at Off The Vine, and even have a "Wine Tasting and a Show" promotion with an area theater!

Santa Clarita - All Corked Up
26340 Diamond Place
Santa Clarita, CA  91350
866.4ACU.WINE (9463)
It's a wine bar.  No, it's a wine store.  Well, it's both.  Depends on which door you use to enter.  It's actually more - it's also a restaurant with some really fabulous food, and a wine storage facility, too.  All Corked Up is hidden away, even by Santa Clarita standards.  They're in a business park and hidden from the view of the main road - you should definitely call for directions if you don't know your way around.  Once you find them, you'll most likely be glad you went to the trouble.  The bar area - up front - is upscale and comfortable.  A long bar and a room full of tables offer plenty of space to relax, swirl, sniff and taste.  In the back area is the store, where you can find bottles of the great wines you just tasted.  There's live music on a regular basis and special tasting events are never too far away. Be sure to write down the directions or throw down bread crumbs on your way there - you'll want to return.

Signal Hill - The Wine Country
2301 Redondo Avenue
Signal Hill, CA 90755
800.505.5564
No mistaking this place.  It's a full-bore wine store.  They do pour a taste or two from time to time, though.  Regular tastings occur on Thursday and Saturday afternoons, with more in-depth classes on most Friday and some Wednesday nights.  The Wine Country's website provides a clutch of information and even a Philosophy of Wine.  In that lengthy treatise, the notion of wine made for the marketplace is rejected and a more terroir-driven product is embraced.  It is this type of wine they strive to present in the store.

Whittier - Phlight
6724 Bright Avenue
Whittier, CA 90601
562.789.0578
In historic Uptown Whittier, Phlight is a wine and tapas bar near the intersection of Philadelphia and Bright.  They serve daily flights of 3 wines for $12,  4 for $16.  Their wines are excellent, with a list that looks to be about half Californian and half Spanish, Argentine and Australian.  An occasional wine from Italy, Germany and New Zealand may show up on the menu, too.  Visit their website and you'll find that Phlight is the dream of an enterprising young couple who want to give something back to their hometown.  It appears they are giving a lot, as Phlight has become quite the hotspot in Uptown Whittier.

Ca' del Solo Albarino 2008

Bonny Doon Vineyard's Randall Grahm has two driving forces in the present phase of his arc as a winemaker.  One is to make wines which express a sense of place - terroir - and the other is to achieve and maintain a green attitude toward winemaking.  With his Ca' del Solo Albarino, he makes great strides on both counts.

His terroir is fully on display in this wine, a zesty and mineral-laden representation of the earth from his Salinas Valley vineyard.  It is also certified Biodynamic, a front-burner issue for Grahm these days.  Grahm's needs have been met with this beautiful white - and so have ours.

The wine pours up a pale yellow-green in the glass.  It's wonderfully aromatic, with floral notes, a ton of citrus and plenty of minerals. It has a nose that keeps you busy.  It's one of those wines that smells so good you might have to remind yourself to drink it.  Please don't forget to do so.  On the palate, this Albarino is nice and crisp, a very clean taste - zesty is the word that keeps popping into my head - and it finishes clean.

Grahm has a proclivity for unheralded grapes.  While Albarino doesn't really qualify as unheralded for me, the other two grapes in the mix are decidedly lesser stars.  Loureiro and Treixadura both hail from northern Portugal and are used mainly as blending grapes in crisp, dry white wines.

Variety:  75% Albarino, 21% Loureiro, 4% Treixadura
Appellation:  California > Monterey County
Vineyard:  Ca' del Solo
Vintage:  2008
Alcohol Level:  12.8%
Price:  $20
Acquisition disclaimer:  Provided for purpose of review

Wine Events Coming up in 2010

Pasadena PinotFest, 2nd Annual
Jan 24-30
Noir Food & Wine
40 North Mentor Avenue
Pasadena, CA 91106
Jan 24 7:00 p.m. – Brian Loring Winemaker Dinner - $129
Jan 29 5:00 p.m. - Wes Hagen, Clos Pepe Tasting - $20
Jan 30 3:00 p.m. - Public Grand Tasting - $75 advance, $89 at door.
Attendance is limited to 350.
Each night during PinotFest Noir Food & Wine will feature flights of the Pinots from some of the participating wineries. $20-$30
All three events available for $200
*****
Loyola Marymount University Wine Classic
Jan 31  2:00-5:00 p.m.
Loyola Marymount University
1 LMU Drive
LA CA 90045
310.338.5278
More than 150 California boutiuque wineries will be featured.  A silent auction of specialty wines and products will be featured.  Proceeds benefit LMU student scholarships.
$90, $80 if purchased by January 15
*****
Stars of Santa Barbara, 7th Annual
Wednesday, February 3
7:00-9:30 p.m.
The Peninsula Hotel, Beverly Hills
9882 S. Santa Monica Blvd
Beverly Hills, Ca 90212
310.451.7600
Attendance is limited to 125.
Cost: $120.  Limited number of discount tickets are available at Goldstar for $69 while they last.  http://www.goldstar.com/events/beverly-hills-ca/stars-of-santa-barbara-at-the-peninsula-beverly-hills.html
The wine education group Learn About Wine will stage this event spotlighting 116 wines from the Santa Barbara area.  Participating wineries are set to include such luminaries as Ampelos, Carr, Dierberg, La Fenetre, Lucas & Lewellen, Riverbench, Sanford, Tantara and Zaca Mesa.
*****
Valentine'N Wine Passport Weekend
Feb 12 - 15  Noon-5:00 p.m.
Participating Wineries of Ventura County
Seven wineries in Ventura County are hosting this tasting tour.  Bella Victorian Vineyard, Cantara Cellars, Herzog Wine Cellars, Rancho Ventavo Cellars, Old Creek Ranch Winery, Casa Barranca and Camarillo Custom Crush are the stops along the way, all within shouting distance of the 101 Freeway between Highway 23 and Highway 33.
$35 advance, $40 during event
*****
Top 100 Cabs of the Napa Valley
Feb 13 3:00-6:00 p.m.
Bayleaf Restaurant
2025 Monticello Road
Napa, CA 94558
818.224.8603
A judged blind tasting of the Top 100 Cabs of the Napa Valley is the highlight, but you'll enjoy tasting the top Cabs in the land that's known for them.  Hors d'ouevres will be served.  Judges will taste and score over 400 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon wines several days prior to the event.  They will be ranked from 1 to 100 for you to taste them.
Attendance is limited to 300.
$95 $135 at door
*****
Madera Wine Trail's Wine and Chocolate Weekend
Feb 13 - 14 Noon-5:00 p.m.
Wineries of the Madera Wine Trail
9400 Road 36
Madera, CA 93636
800.613.0709
Wine and cocolate delights for those in the Central Valley over Valentine's weekend.
*****
Edge of L.A. 1st Ever International Wine Festival
Apr 10 2:00-6:00 p.m.
Michael's of Tuscany
470 W. 7th
San Pedro, CA
310.831.1551
Over 40 wineries will be represented, hailing from all over the world.  Favorites from California will be featured alongside French, Eastern European, Aussie and more.  There's a Winemaker Dinner following the event and a silent auction.  Proceeds benefit charities.
Cost: $50 - $500.  Limited number of tickets available.

On a smaller scale - but just as enjoyable -my friends at Pourtal in Santa Monica, The Wine House in West L.A., Wally's in Westwood, Rosso and 55 Degree Wine in Glendale, K&L in Hollywood, Off The Vine in San Pedro and All Corked Up in Santa Clarita all sponsor regular tastings and special events.  Check the website of your favorite wine hang and pay them a visit!  Always remember to drink responsibly.  That includes tastings, too.  If you don't have a designated driver, that's why they have spit buckets.

"They Got This Recession On" Wines, Part 8

Mouton Cadet Blanc Bordeaux 2008

It's January as I take the Mouton Cadet in hand.  It's been in my rack since the warmer weather and other bright, shiny objects have been bumping it off the pedestal for quite some time.  The amazing reds of winter, I have decided, shall take a back seat today.  

I don't feel that I drink enough French wine.  I'm such a fanboy for California's Central Coast that I just don't seem to get around to Bordeaux as often as I would like.  Why not do so with a wine from a legendary name?  Baron Philippe de Rothschild seems legendary enough.

Aah, but I have forgotten - they got this recession on.  No matter.  This legendary Bordeaux cost a mere $8 at Trader Joe's.  As a matter of fact, Mouton Cadet got its start in the not-so-hot economic times of the 1930s.  Baron Phillippe determined the 1930 vintage was not of high enough quality and proceeded to declassify it, taking the Chateau label off the bottle and creating a new brand - Cadet, since he was the youngest in the family.  The wine has undergone a number of changes through its history, but has built a solid reputation for affordable quality.

This white wine is a pale golden hue in the glass.  The nose is ruled by Sauvignon Blanc, with aromas of grassiness and wet sidewalk showing the mineral aspect.  Grapefruit zest is also abundant.  I taste the crisp tartness of the Sauvignon Blanc and get a mellow edge from the Semillon and Muscadelle.  Cadet finishes very clean and leaves the palate feeling completely refreshed.

Variety:  60% Sauvignon Blanc, 30% Semillon, 10% Muscadelle

Appellation:  France > Bordeaux
Vintage:  2008
Alcohol Level:  12%
Price:  $8
Acquisition disclaimer:  Purchased by the author

Zinology At Pourtal

Fans of Zinfandel - and similar grapes Primitivo and Plavac Mali - will want to get to Pourtal in Santa Monica for their Tasting Tour of some favorites from California, Italy and Croatia.  Eight of the taps in Pourtal's Enomatic system have been converted over to these big, flavorful wines and will be ready for tasting through the middle of February.  You can swing by anytime it's convenient for you.  Pourtal has the Tasting Tour itinerary in PDF form.

Pourtal's Sommelier Rachel Bryan put together an interesting mix.  It's heavy on the Zinfandel with five California Zins included.  Dashe, Ridge, Quivira, Four Vines and Turley are the representatives from the Golden State.  Two Italian Primitivos - from Guttarolo and Vigneti Reale - and a Croation Plavac Mali from Dingac Peljesac round out the world tour.  Bryan explains why Zin's roots are mysterious: "Some say California Zinfandel came from the Croatian grape, Plavac Mali, stopping by Italy, where they call it Primitivo. All wine grapes have roots from Western Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, however their exact origins are sometimes unknown, disputed, or have been genetically proven. Zinfandel's origins have been the subject of dispute since the 1800’s."

All three grapes in this Tasting Tour are said to be related.  Whether or not they are, the similarities are undeniable and worth experiencing.

Pourtal Wine Tasting Bar
104 Santa Monica Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90401
310.393.7693

Tamas Estates Barbera 2006

One of the great things about giving gifts to your friends is that sometimes they give you gifts right back.  Denise made a wonderful three-cheese rigatoni dish last week to give to our friend Sioux-z.  Sioux-z looks forward to receiving anything that's stamped "From Denise's Kitchen."  She's almost as big a fan of my wife's cooking as I am, and that says a lot.  With several days notice, and knowing we say "yes" to wine, she very thoughtfully procured a gift for us in return for the rigatoni.  I have a glass of it beside me as I write this.

Tamas Estates - despite the European-looking name and a wine list that would fit in nicely in an Italian restaurant - is located in California's Livermore Valley.  Livermore is up the 680 from San Jose and just east of Pleasanton.  Besides the Barbera, Tamas also produces several other Cal-Italia wines.  Pinot Grigio, Sangiovese, and their Vino Rosso blend.  They also make a "Prima Classe Riserva" which, I understand, combines a super-Tuscan blend with a Barbera Port.  Yummy.  The Barbera has had a half hour to breathe, so let's dive in!

Upon opening, the wine carries a lot of heat - it requires a full hour to settle down.  Once it did, though, it was very mellow.  The next night it was ready to go upon unscrewing the cap.  The Barbera's color is very dark, so dark I can barely see through it.  The nose gives notes of a brambly blackberry and a toasty vanilla.  On the palate there's big fruit and a high acidity level.  I'm thinking this wine would be great with sausage or even a steak.  Maybe I'll buy another bottle and be prepared for Denise's next rigatoni night!

Winemaker:  Chris Graves

Variety:  100% Barbera

Appellation:  California > San Francisco Bay > Alameda > Livermore Valley
Vintage:  2006

Alcohol Level:  13.5%

Price:  $13

Acquisition disclaimer:  Gift from a friend

Weil Estate Riesling Rheingau 2007

When I talk to people about trying to find a wine that smells like gasoline, it's generally accepted as a joke.  Unless, of course, I'm talking to someone who knows Riesling.  On a recent visit to the Wine House in West Los Angeles, I asked about just that.  

They're very helpful at the Wine House, and when I asked for help in finding a Riesling with a good strong hint of petrol, the response was quick and accurate.  Robert Weil's Estate Riesling is as dry as a bone and as German as a Volkswagen.  The pale yellow color looks tame enough, but the nose brings that petrol aroma along with a floral note.  The wine tastes tart, with bracing minerals and a well-balanced acidity. 

Varietal:  100% Riesling
Appelation:  Germany > Rheingau
Vintage:  2007
Alcohol Level:  11.5% abv
Price:  $15
Acquisition Disclaimer:  Purchased by author

Valpanera Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso 2007

This Italian red wine is produced from a single variety of grape, the Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, named for the red stem on which it grows.  This grape dates back to around the first century, and there aren't too many things about which you can say that.  If you've never heard of the grape before - and many casual wine drinkers in America haven't - understand that they've been working with it in Italy for a long time, so they really know what they are doing.

The wine is a very deep red color, so deep I can barely see light through it.  It is aged anywhere from eight to twelve months - in stainless steel.  A red wine aged in steel may surprise you, but it's not uncommon to find it done that way in Italy.  The fruit really comes through in the nose - quite dark yet inviting.  I smell blackberries and currants.

It sits medium full in the mouth and has a very clean taste due to the lack of wood.  On the palate it's equally fruity with a deliciously dark flavor.  Smokey doesn't quite describe it, but it's close.  Earthy, almost musty might be a little closer to the truth.

Let it sit awhile before enjoying it and you'll be rewarded with a smooth, clean-tasting red.  Denise used it in a crock pot melange of potatoes and carrots and it really imparted a wonderful flavor.  Plus, when she used the wine to cook the dish it made the two a perfect match.  It's really a delightful find. 

Variety: 100% Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso 

Appelation: Italy > Friuli-Venezia Giulia > Friuli Aquileia 

Vintage: 2007 

Alcohol Level: 12.5% abv 

Price: $23 

Acquisition disclaimer: Purchased by author