VERDAD ROSE, SAWYER LINDQUIST VINEYARD, EDNA VALLEY 2009

During the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, all the blogosphere and Twitterverse was abuzz with what kind of wine to pair with the big feast.  My intentions were to get a little bit adventurous and open a Rhone blend or a Tempranillo.  As I was shopping, though, I was once again lured by Edna Valley.  This year's turkeyfest was abetted by a Grenache rosé.

Verdad Winery and Vineyard is the labor of love of Louisa Sawyer Lindquist.  She happens to be the wife of Qupe's Bob Lindquist, and happens to have some pretty substantial winemaking ability of her own.

Verdad means "truth" in Spanish, and the truth is: I could hardly have made a better choice for the Thanksgiving wine - if I do say so myself.  Lindquist's fascination with and love of Spanish grape varieties comes to fruition in California's Central Coast - Edna Valley, to be exact.

The Grenache grapes for Verdad rosé - Tablas Creek clone - are grown in two vineyards in Edna Valley, the Sawyer Lindquist Vineyard and the Ibarra-Young Vineyard.  The former is farmed biodynamically while the latter is organic.  The grapes are grown specifically for rosé, and early picking results in a lower alcohol content - only 12.1% abv.  Stainless steel fermentation gives the wine a pure fruit profile.

First of all, the wine is a beautiful salmon color.  The nose is fabulous, showing strawberry and an herbal component.  A faint cherry-candy aroma adds a festive note.  On the palate, it's lip-smacking good.  Strawberry, cherry and raspberry come together like a riot in the orchard.  It feels so full and round in the mouth, and delivers a nice zing of lime on the finish.  The cherry flavor seems to hang around the longest.  The acidity is not razor-sharp, but it's healthy enough to carry turkey and stuffing crisply.  I found that out the easy way - at the dinner table.

TENUTA ST. PETER RIESLING ALTO ADIGE 2008

If you're like me, when you hear the words "Italian Riesling," something just doesn't sound right.  Of course, the Alto Adige wine region of northern Italy is really more Germanic than Italian.  It borders Austria and is known for its grapes that are more often associated with Germany and Austria.  Gewurztraminer and Riesling are produced in this Alpine area in which the wine industry is comprised largely of small, family-owned wineries.

Some degree of difficulty usually greets me when I try to research small Italian wines.  Such is the case with Tenuta St. Peter Riesling.  All I know is what I remember seeing on the label at Il Buco in Beverly Hills, which sports one of my favorite wine lists in Southern California.  Their collection of Italian wines has never let me down.

This Riesling is 13.5% abv and shows a pale golden-green color in the glass.  There is a strong aroma of minerals or wet rocks on the nose, and a secondary smell of melon - like a canteloupe, but not just the fruit.  I smell the rind and all.

The palate gives a very restrained sense of pears and honeydew, with an overriding minerality.  The acidity stops just short of being bracing.  It's a very smooth quaff which paired quite well with the salad featuring tuna and lentils.

STEALTH WINE

Maybe you've been shopping for wine and have come across a brand you've never heard of before.  Maybe the merchant told you it was a good deal, because it was wine from a very famous winery which has been bottled under a different brand.

An article by Dave McIntyre, which appeared in the Washington Post recently, explains that this can happen when the wine is sold in bulk by the winery to another party who bottles it and sells it as his own.

According to the article, "stealth" labels, as they are called, are appearing a lot in our down economy.

Wine producers that may sell, for instance, a Cabernet Sauvignon for $75 a bottle, sell the wine in bulk to another party.  This party then bottles it with his own label and sells it for $20 a bottle.  Same wine, better price.

The thing is, it's hard to know what's a stealth label and what is not.  Purchasers usually make a secrecy agreement with the winery.  This protects the original brand.

It also gives you an opportunity to pick up some real bargains - if you can spot the stealth labels!  Ask your wine merchant to point you in the direction of these good values.

STANZA GEWURZTRAMINER 2008

Browsing the wine racks recently, I had the notion that I'd like to find some wines which might be nice for the holidays.  I spied a Monterey Gewürztraminer from Stanza and thought I'd give it a spin.

Stanza is apparently part of Delicato Vineyards of Manteca, CA.  It retails for $14, but I bought it at a two-for-one sale.

This wine shows a pale golden color in the glass, and has a nose that's floral and sweet, with the aromas of peaches and nutmeg making a statement.

The palate is also floral, with pear notes, a gentle spiciness and a lovely acidity, although it's not really bracing.  What I remember most is the finish.  It is so full of zesty lime and minerals - what a treat!  That finish lingers quite a while, too.

While the nutmeg profile in the nose had me thinking of adding it to my holiday list, I decided it was really too faint an accent for that, so I'll keep looking for those holiday whites.

GIFTS FOR WINE LOVERS

Certainly the best gift for someone who loves wine is - wait for it - wine!  But if you don't know what kind of wine to give, or what kind the person likes, you might consider a wine club membership.

Wine clubs send a package of wine to their members at monthly, bi-monthly or quarterly intervals.  It may be a grab bag of different styles, only red, only whites, etcetera.  The cost varies widely, as does the quality of the wine.

There's a seemingly endless supply of clubs to choose from.  You might select one from a good wine store or a winery the recipient likes.  Most wineries offer wine clubs featuring their wines.

Gift options vary from club to club, but you may be able to gift a month, a year or longer.  Keep in mind that when the gift subscription ends, it's up to the recipient to extend the membership.

Fancy corkscrews are a hit if your friend only has one around the house, but there are only so many corkscrews a person can use, unless they collect them.  The Rabbit Corkscrew (from Metrokane Wine Tools) retails from about $40 to $100 and claims to allow the user to open any bottle of wine in three seconds without any huffing or puffing.

Stemware is always a good gift for a wine lover, especially if it's special.  Austria's Riedel Crystal is generally regarded as the standard-bearer for quality wine glasses.  Look to spend $60 to $100 each for Riedel glasses.

A Wine Chiller is something every wine lover would love to have. For under $20 you can find these items which employ a reusable cooling element you keep in your freezer until you need it. It can chill a bottle of wine in five minutes.

People who can't wait for their wine to chill probably can't wait for their wine to breathe, either.  A Wine Aerator is what they need.  Vinturi makes one that goes for about $30.  The wine breathes while it's pouring into the glass.  Is that fast enough for you?

No matter what kind of wine the person on your gift list likes, anybody can use a nice bottle ofChampagne.  Dom Perignon has a special release this year honoring Andy Warhol, which goes for around $150 a bottle, special label included.  Buy the three labels separately, or as a set - forreally good friends.

By the way, the cute little items in the image can be found at San Antonio Winery in downtown Los Angeles.

QUEEN OF HEARTS PINOT NOIR 2008

The label and name on this Santa Barbara County red wine were unfamiliar to me when I picked it up at Whole Foods, but I couldn’t help but notice the Queen Of Hearts winery address was given as Buellton, CA.  Buellton is sort of a “gateway to wine country” town located just off the 101 freeway between Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo.
 
Turns out, it’s a Lucas and Lewellen Vinyards brand.  Winemaker Megan McGrath promises a nose of blackberry, black cherry and cola, with flavors of plum, strawberry and spice.

This Pinot Noir is a medium ruby color which I can see right through.  On the nose, raspberry and strawberry lead the way.  There’s an awful lot of heat noticeable in the aromas, even a half hour after pouring.  On the palate the fruit is as bright and perky as it can be, in fact it’s delicious.  An alcohol burn, unfortunately, spoils it.

It finally settles down after an hour.  Again, the taste is so bright and fruity, it’s hard to find fault.  But as juicy and fruity as it is, there is a decided lack of minerals.  An earthy layer would really add another dimension to the wine’s taste.

To compound things, the wine seems overoaked and fakey.  Fighting through the alcohol haze on the nose are a boatload of spicy aromas.  The spice and alcohol mix for a medicinal smell. 

In fairness, after two hours, this wine is much more approachable.  Two hours, however, is a long time to wait for a glass of wine to become drinkable.  Even on the second night it was open, the wait was over an hour before it was pleasurable to drink.  And it still seemed somewhat overoaked.

All this would be unremarkable in a wine that cost $5.  Queen Of Hearts sells for $15 - not a lot for Pinot Noir.  Still, I couldn't help but wish more had been delivered.

SPARKLING WINE RECOMMENDATIONS

Between Thanksgiving, Christmas and assorted other holiday parties - then New Year's Eve - it seems like there's a good excuse for Champagne around every corner.  There's certainly nothing wrong with a good Champagne from Moet & Chandon, Veuve Cliquot, Piper-Heidsieck, Mumm, Nicholas Feuillatte and a host of others.  With prices for real Champagne - from Champagne, France - getting in the over-100-dollar range very quickly, you may want to look into some good domestic options that are just as festive, but a little easier on the wallet.

From Calistoga, California, Schramsberg is America's first sparkling wine house.  They've been tickling noses since 1965.  Their 1998 J. Schram Rosé sells for over $100, but they offer a wide range of current releases all the way down the price list to the $20 range.

Napa Valley's Domaine Carneros offers a variety of sparkling wines for around $25 to $85 per bottle.

Sonoma County's Gloria Ferrer Va de Vi has a bit of Muscat thrown in and sells for about $20.

Laetitia, in California's Arroyo Grande Valley, has a several Central Coast sparklers ranging from $20 to $35.

Bonny Doon's Riesling To Live was produced for club members, and those members swear by it.  A sparkling Riesling wine produced in méthode champenoise, it sells for about $35.  They say it's a good "Riesling" to join the winery's club.

Massachussetts winery Westport Rivers offers several acclaimed bubblies costing between $25 and $30.

Kluge Estate, in Virginia, makes sparkling wine a specialty of the house.  Their Kluge SP Rose 2007 goes for just under $30.

Segura Viudas, a sparkling Pinot Noir from Spain, usually runs about $20.

Chateau Frank, of New York's Finger Lakes Region, has sparkling wines that go for $20, $25, $30 and $35.

A sparkling Riesling from New York's Finger Lakes region took the top prize at the 2010 New York Wine & Food Classic competition.  Swedish Hill Riesling Cuvée NV, which sells for about $18, was awarded the Governor's Cup for best in show, according to Decanter.com.  The wine's production was very limited, so it may be a little hard to find.

SPARKLING WINE

The holidays and the year end celebrations have turned many wine lovers' thoughts toward Champagne, the bubbly celebratory drink that hits its stride around this time of year.

It's a good time to note that "Champagne" technically comes only from the region in France known as Champagne.  From anywhere else, it's sparkling wine.  Spumante is the generic name for sparkling wine in Italy.  In Spain, it's Cava.  Germans and Austrians call it Sekt.  It's Cap Classique in South Africa.  Even in France, if it's not from Champagne, it may be called mousseux or crément.

Wherever it's from, and whatever it's called, the common denominator is all those bubbles, which are produced by carbon dioxide formed in the bottle during fermentation.

Champagne is produced using Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, while mousseux and crémant may use other grapes.

Asti, in the Italian wine region of Piedmont, produces a spumante from Moscato grapes, while Prosecco grapes are used for the Italian sparkler that goes by that grape's name.

In Spain, Cava is made mainly in Catalonia from Macabeo, Xarello and Parellada.

Sekt is made with Riesling, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris grapes in Germany, Welschriesling and Grüner Veltliner grapes in Austria.

There are those who feel a day isn't complete without a little bubbly, and others who save that treat for the holidays, or special occasions - liking ringing in the new year.  Wherever you fall on that spectrum, no doubt there'll be a bottle or two of Champagne, sparkling wine, crémant or Cava in your near future. 

Just don't forget about it once the bowl games are over.

Tomorrow, some suggestions for "bargain bubblies"!

TWO ITALIAN WINES AT TERRONI LOS ANGELES

After a busy Sunday of running all over the rather unfamiliar terrain of downtown Los Angeles, Denise and I decided to stop at Terroni on Beverly Boulevard.  Truth be told, it’s a place where we often would like to stop and dine, but it always seems so crowded and there are never any parking spaces available on that rather restaurant-y stretch of Beverly.

This time, as we passed by: No crowd!  Parking spaces!  Let’s eat!

Terroni started in Toronto - there are still three locations there - and spread to Los Angeles a few years ago.  We love the southern Italian cooking there, and the Italo-centric wine list that pairs so well with it.

Terroni’s space is big and informal with a mix of high bar tables, big wooden tables and small round kitchenette-style tables with plastic Eames chairs.  It’s a family place, and when we walked in on a cloudy-dark Sunday afternoon, there were several families with little ones at the table having a Sunday supper while keeping one eye out the window awaiting the apparently imminent cloudburst.

We all enjoyed our meals and made it home before the rains came.  Denise and I enjoyed a pair of wines which paired quite well with the food, while tasting great on their own, too.

I had the wine on the left,  the ‘09 Erste & Neue Pinot Bianco Weissburgunder, Prunar, Südtirol Alto Adige d.o.c.  In addition to being a mouthful, that's a $12 entry on Terroni’s wonderful list of biancos and rossos.  This grape seems to go by its Italian name as well as its Austrian one, Weissburgunder.  It’s from the Alpine region of Alto Adige.

Light green-tinted straw in color, the nose features minerals, lots of ‘em.  The smell of wet rocks near a stream is what I call it.  Pineapple aromas make an appearance, but they have to fight their way out from under those huge, wet rocks.  Pineapple and minerals dominate the palate similarly, with an almost-bracing acidity and a fruity finish.

The mineral-laden white wine paired perfectly with my spaghetti ca’ muddica, with anchovies, black olives, cherry tomatoes and breadcrumbs.

Denise had the wine on the right, the ‘06 Zerbina Torre di Ceparano, Sangiovese di Romagna Superiore, Emilia-Romagna d.o.c. at $14 by the glass.  Emilia-Romagna lies right across a mountain range from Tuscany.  The region is known for its dry Lambrusco - nothing like the sweet type Riunite made famous - and its own clone of the Tuscan Sangiovese grape which has a tendancy to take on much darker characteristics than those of its Tuscan cousin.

The wine, sure enough, is quite dark, and the nose shows black cherry, blackberry and anise.  On the palate, raspberry and black cherry join hands for a velvety smooth walk.  The smooth texture and full mouthfeel somewhat disguise the great acidity this wine shows.  It produces a slight mouth-puckering effect without the tannic edge.

It was delicious, and great as a match with her agnolotti filled with braised beef in a butter, Parmesan and sage sauce.

WINE VERSUS BEER

On this weekend's CBS Sunday Morning, Barry Petersen did a report which included some comments from a UC-Davis professor of brewing, Charlie Bamforth.  He’s a beer man, and he made some comments that were downright inflammatory about our favorite beverage, wine.

For starters, Bamforth claims beer is a more sophisticated drink than wine, but I’ll limit my comments to those statements of his which merit them.

He states that Thomas Jefferson was a brewer, which may be so.  Some important documents may have been written in pubs over a few pints, but Jefferson devoted his life to wine.  He grew grapes in an attempt to make wine.  He traveled several times all over Europe in an effort to find great wines and, in the process, made volumes of notes about their winemaking processes.  It’s folly to think he cared more for beer than wine.

Bamforth talks about how beer is the Rodney Dangerfield of beverages - it gets no respect.  In many cases, he’s right.  But there are literally hundreds of quality beers readily available to beer drinkers these days.  Why is the top three still Bud Light, Miller Lite and Coors Light?  Oh, sure, wine sells to a lowest common denominator audience, too.  We’ll call that a draw.  Suffice it to say that when a beverage-based parallel is needed for low-class vs high-class, Joe Six-Pack does not live in the Champagne District.

Finally, when Bamforth compares beer tasting to wine tasting, he chides wine tasters for spitting out their samples.  “We swallow,” said Bamforth, “none of that ridiculous spitting.”  It’s worth pointing out that when you are at a wine tasting event where you expect to taste 50 to 60 different wines, even at one ounce per taste, without spitting, you would be consuming a gallon of wine!  After that kind of bender, you would be in no shape to drive home.  So I think Bamforth should back off on his derision of wine tasting habits which are actually beneficial to society.

It’s a good-natured rivalry, this wine versus beer thing.  But really, there’s no need to take potshots at one another.  Drink what you like.  Whether it’s beer or wine, good for you!  There’s plenty of enjoyment to go around!

BRIDLEWOOD CENTRAL COAST RESERVE VIOGNIER 2008

Although Italian food calls for Italian wine, Denise and I knew we'd be waiting a few minutes for Guido, so I decided to break tradition and go with a good old Central Coast white as a pre-meal refresher.

Sprazzo - on Westwood Boulevard in Los Angeles - has a good, but not great, wine list.  It does have its high points, though.  One of those highlights is the Bridlewood Viognier.

Winemaker David Hopkins blended several different lots of grapes from Central Coast vineyards for this lush wine.  Destemmed grapes - 90% Viognier, 4% Chardonnay, 4% Marsanne and 2% Roussanne - are fermented and aged in stainless steel, so it's fresh, clean and crisp.  The alcohol content is 14.2% abv.

This Viognier is very pale, with a greenish tint.  Matching that hue are aromas of limes and a slight grassiness on the nose.  There's quite a floral element, too.

The mouthfeel is full and creamy - it just feels delicious - and there's a wonderful acidity, which seems downplayed at first but comes on stronger at the finish.  Soft flavors of grapefruit and a citrus zestiness give the wine a very refreshing character.

CLEAN SLATE RIESLING 2009 AT FABROCINI'S

A beautiful, sunny Friday provides a great excuse - as if I need one - to hit Mulholland Drive and make my way over to Fabrocini's Beverly Glen.  This Italian restaurant in the Beverly Glen Center has my favorite dish for lunch.  Their calamari and scungilli salad is on the short list of things for which I live.

It was extra good this time, with less lettuce and more of those tentacled creatures from the deep.  There might have been a better choice for wine, but I was in the mood for a Riesling.
Clean Slate takes its name from the slate stones in the vineyards. They describe it this way:

"The thin slate stones of our vineyards in the Mosel River Valley are a critical factor in crafting a Riesling of exquisite balance.  So precious are these stones that those which slip into the river are carefully carried back up the treacherously steep vineyard slopes and returned to place.  Reflecting and retaining heat, the slate is essential to ripening the grapes in this cool climate..."

This Riesling has a pale yellow-green tint and a pretty nose that's fruity with pears and white peaches.  Nice and full in the mouth, it tastes of peaches and pears with a squeeze of citrus.  The minerality - no doubt owing some debt to those slate stones - is very refreshing.  It has a good acidity, but it doesn't come on really strong.  A nice finish leaves a slate and citrus feel on the palate.

Clean Slate Riesling is sold by the glass at Fabrocini's for $9.

WINE TV ADS III

While we're rummaging through YouTube to find old wine ads, we might as well devote a page to a series of commercials which was warmly embraced back in the '80s and is still fondly remembered today.

Bartles and Jaymes Wine Coolers were hawked by a pair of homespun "winemakers," Frank Bartles and Ed Jaymes.  The pair were reportedly loosely based on Ernest and Julio Gallo themselves.  The 30-second spots were comedic in nature and always ended with the Frank Bartles character saying, "Thank you for your support."  In fact, it was Frank who said everything.  I don't remember Ed ever having a spoken line.

E & J Gallo still produce the wine coolers and malt beverages that make up their Bartles & Jaymes line of products.  Nowadays, they come in a whole slew of flavors, too, like Blue Hawaiian, Mojito and Sangria.

So, crack open a wine cooler, sit back and enjoy some bona-fide 1980s television.

Bartles and Jaymes Ad 1 

Bartles and Jaymes Ad 2

Bartles and Jaymes Ad 3

Bartles and Jaymes Ad 4

Bartles and Jaymes Ad 5

Bartles and Jaymes spoof on Conan O'Brien in 1994

EDNA VALLEY VINEYARD CHARDONNAY PARAGON VINEYARD 2008

California Chardonnay- big, bombastic white wines full of oak and all that implies - is a style many wine drinkers have been shying away from in recent years.  The swing toward unoaked - naked, if you will - Chardonnays which emphasize the flavor of the fruit and the effect of the earth has left many old-line California Chardonnays holding the oak.

I’ll admit, I love the purity and minerality expressed in an unoaked or low-oaked Chardonnay.  Burgundy found long ago how much was to be gained by letting the terroir do the talking.  There are times, though, when you want a Chardonnay to get all hedonistic on you.  For me, the holiday season is that time.

After months of austere whites and fruity, bone-dry rosés, the arrival of that lip-smacking prelude to the Thanksgiving feast puts me in the mood for a big, creamy, buttery Chardonnay.  And I look to Edna Valley.

A place responsible for many of those austere whites which refreshed me through the summer, Edna Valley is also home to one of my favorite over-the-top Chardonnays, Edna Valley Vineyard.

A San Luis Obispo County favorite, the ‘08 Paragon Vineyard Chardonnay has a nose full of vanilla spice, richly layered flavors and a near-bracing acidity to make it a more than capable holiday choice.  It’s great with food.  Turkey is a snap for this wine, which even turns a handful of peanuts or almonds into a gourmet delight.

I had a bottle early in the spring, and it put me in mind of a holiday spread even then.  “The wood comes through in healthy fashion,” I wrote, “with strong notes of vanilla and traces of holiday spice.  This would be a great white on the Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner table.”

The wine shows a golden straw color in the glass, one that suggests there may be some oak at play.  The nose further reveals that influence with the spiciness.  Pears and some of those Edna Valley minerals also are apparent.”

The incredibly full palate is dripping with the sweet fruit flavor found in a can of fruit, like pineapple, pears or peaches in heavy juice.  There's more than a trace of lemon zest, too, and a razor-sharp acidity despite the creaminess of the mouthfeel.  So big is the taste, it may make you think there's an extra portion of something on your plate.

My bottle was on sale at a discount store for $13.  Its 13.9% abv, is a fairly moderate number, something many of us like to keep in mind during holiday entertaining.

HOLIDAY DESSERT

Maybe you're already so frozen with anxiety about selecting the wine for your holiday feast you haven't even given any thought to the dessert!  I hope that's not the case.

First of all, if you don't have the time or the inclination to get all wrapped up in selecting a wine for Thanksgiving - or Christmas - dinner, just drink what you like.  As long as you're with people you love, that's all that really matters.

Secondly, this tip from Roberto Rogness at Wine Expo in Santa Monica, California is too good not to pass along.

Roberto says, "whichever pie you serve, garnish it with whipped cream that has about one part in ten of a nice dessert wine whipped right into the cream!"  He suggests using Moscato for pumpkin pie, Sherry for pecan and Porto for fruit or chocolate pies.  "Just whip the wine right into the whipped cream!"

That sounds so delicious I may have to try it before the actual holiday arrives.  I think I owe it to my guests to make sure it really is good.

Inexpensive choices for these wine pairing suggestions abound.  Barefoot Moscato is under $10, and so is Taylor Dry Sherry.  Dow's Fine Ruby Port is available most places for $15 or less.

TASTING WINE ON TWITTER

Two Twitter-based wine tastings will occur on Wednesday November 17, 2010.  Unfortunately for taste'n'tweet fans, they both are set to happen at the same time, meaning tasters will either have to choose one in which to participate or try to keep a hand in both at the same time.  The latter choice could get confusing.

Whole Foods Market invites wine enthusiasts to join their first-ever Twitter Tasting, when national wine buyers Doug Bell and Geof Ryan will taste six wines from the grocery chain's Top 10 Holiday Wine list.  The featured wines for the Twitter Tasting include: De Chanceny Crémant Loire, Römerhof Riesling,Simonette-Febvre Saint-Bris, Dievole Dievolino Sangiovese di Toscana, Valley of the Moon Syrah, andPaso A Paso Organically Grown Tempranillo.  You can follow along by using the @WFMWine handle or the hashtag #WFMWine.

The Four Seasons hotel group presents three of its top sommeliers to lead their tasting event on Twitter.  Dana Farner of the Beverley Wilshire in Los Angeles, James Tidwell of the Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas, Texas and Mark Sayre of the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, Texas will taste and tweet about Dr. L Riesling by the Loosen Brothers, Paraiso Syrah andChappellet's Mountain Cuvee.  All three wines will be discussed by the experts and questions will be invited.  Follow the conversation on Twitter by using the hashtag #FSWine. 

BEAUJOLAIS NOUVEAU 2010, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Beaujolais Nouveau occurs on Thursday, November 18, 2010.  This news is either met with glee and anticipation or, uh, something less than that.

It's a French happening, the day when the Beaujolais region may officially release the year's vintage of Gamay wine.  Some embrace the day and thirst for that young, newborn wine to take its first halting steps.  Others say "What's all the hubbub, Bub? The wine's too young!"

For those in the first category, here's a small selection of Beaujolais Nouveau events that will carry you through Saturday!



2010 Beaujolais Nouveau At The Wine Country
November 18, 2010
4:30 - 6:30 p.m.
The Wine Country
2301 Redondo Avenue
Signal Hill, CA
Cost: $10
Tasting of the current vintage of Beaujolais Nouveau.

Beaujolais Nouveau At Rosso Wine Shop
November 18, 2010
5:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Rosso Wine Shop
3459 1/2 N Verdugo Road
Glendale, CA
Cost: $10
Taste the Louis Tete 2010 Beaujolais Nouveau with cheese, pate, charcuterie, cornichon and crusty bread.

FrancophoneFest Food & Beverage - Beaujolais Nouveau
November 18, 2010
7:00 p.m. - 2:00 a.m.
Spectra by Wolfgang Puck at the Pacific Design Center
8687 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA
Cost: $20; $30 door
Celebrate food, wine, beer and spirits from Francophone countries (France, Armenia, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada, etc.) Live international performers to help set the tone.

Beaujolais Passions 2010
November 19, 2010
7:00 p.m. - midnight
Beverly Hills Country Club
3084 Motor Avenue
Los Angeles, CA
Cost: $42; $55 door
Keep the celebration going on the day after. Sample the Nouveau along with other wines from the Beaujolais region. Live entertainment and a DJ will spice up the affair. Ticket includes one glass of Beaujolais Nouveau plus bites from France.

Nouveau Beaujolais Wines On The Water
November 20, 2010
6:00 - 7:30 p.m.
Harbor Breeze Cruises
100 Aquarium Way
Dock #2
Long Beach, CA
Cost: $32
One of Morry's wine sharing cruises. It's BYOBN, so bring a bottle of Beaujolais Nouveau to share.

FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA ROSSO 2008

Francis Ford Coppola has paid homage to his Italian ancestry many times in his career, both as a filmmaker and a vintner.  His trilogy of Godfather movies portrayed the strong sense of family that exists in the Italian-American culture.  Most of the characters may have been criminals, but hey, family is family.  His Francis Ford Coppola Winery is also an outgrowth of his heritage.

Coppola's family history, as with many Italian-American families, has a close link with wine.  If my memory serves, he credits his Uncle Mikey with setting the wine stage for him.  Wine was always on the dinner table, every night.  It was everyday wine, nothing special or fancy, but it was good wine.  Coppola's Rosso and Bianco labels are tributes to that tradition.

The '08 Rosso is a blend of 65% Zinfandel, 21% Syrah and 14% Cabernet Sauvignon.  The fruit comes from Lodi, CA and is vinted at the Coppola wine kingdom in Geyserville in Sonoma County.  It's billed as an everyday, food-friendly wine.  The alcohol content is a reasonable 13.5% abv and it usually costs around ten dollars per bottle.  I bought mine on sale for eight.

It's purple color is fairly light - you can see through at the core and it looks downright anemic around the edges.  The nose, though, is huge.  Bombastic, bright cherry aromas mingle with cola and a hint of brambles.  The palate is just as intense.  The cherries are joined by blackberries and framed by smokey cola and graphite notes.  There's a lot of cedar and spice in the flavor profile, too.  The wood makes itself known in no uncertain terms.  The finish is long and nuanced, with a red licorice flavor that really lingers.

Winemaker Corey Beck utilizes the aromatics of the Zinfandel, the spice of the Syrah and the heft of the Cab to craft a wine with so much character you might have to break with tradition and call it fancy - even if it is on the dinner table every night.

WINE AND THE ECONOMY

Do you have wineries in your area?  If you live in the United States, the answer is probably “yes,” because there are now wineries in all 50 states.  These wineries and the associated businesses that serve them are making a huge contribution to their states’ economies, and to the nation’s economic health.

The annual Vintage Virginia Festival is a good example of how tourism affects the wine industry.  The Virginia Wineries Association depends in great part on this festival for revenue.  The only other revenue stream the VWA has is dues from members, and they only have 54 members, according to Wine Business Monthly.  This wine festival is marketed heavily all along the East Coast and its success in large part determines how much good the organization can do for its member wineries.

The Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association says that the wine and grape industry now has a 1.35 billion dollar impact on the Lone Star State.

Missouri Wines.org shows that Missouri’s economy sees a boost of some $700 million dollars annually from wine. - and those are 2007 figures.

The king of wine states in the U.S., California, receives an economic infusion of around 52 billion dollars a year from the wine industry, according to the Wine Institute, and the nation as a whole gets a 162 billion dollar shot in the arm from wine.   

WashingtonWine.org reports that wine is responible for three billion dollars a year to the state of Washington’s economy.  

A recent study, cited by Wines & Vines, showed how even local economies benefit from wine.  The study claims that hotels in Walla Walla, Washington have experienced a 25% growth in room occupancy since wines from their area have been receiving high scores in Wine Spectator magazine. 

WINE TV ADS II

Let's stroll down memory lane again and check out some more of those wonderful TV ads for wine - or wine coolers, as is the case today.

My memory of the 1980s is somewhat vague - and I like it that way - but I would figure these Seagram's Golden Wine Cooler commercials to be from the latter part of that glittering decade.

The ads feature a very young Bruce Willis moonlighting as a spokesman for wine coolers.  He was a very hot property as a TV star back then, and I understand he made millions of dollars doing this series of commercials.


In these spots,


Willis talks:

Seagram's Golden Wine Coolers 1


Willis sings:

Seagrams Golden Wine Coolers 2


and Willis dances:

Seagram's Golden Wine Coolers 3