Out Of The Blue Wine Tasting: Blue Danube Wine Company

The wines of Slovenia and Croatia don't get a lot of exposure except to certified wine geeks who seek out these gems.  Blue Danube Wine Company specializes in importing wines from eastern and central Europe from their base in northern California.  We are all richer that they do.

The Out of the Blue tasting event was held on September 17, 2012 at Los Angeles wine bar Bacaro.  I'm ashamed to say I had never explored the place before, but the discovery is a good one.  The small, rustic interior has chalkboard wine menus featuring small-production wines from all over the world.  They even carry some of the hard-to-pronounce items imported by Blue Danube.  They also have a great kitchen, and I'll mention the food after we cover the wines that were poured at the event.

Frank Dietrich and Michael Newsome were pouring as fast as they could to a small, but appreciative crowd that seemed quite knowledegable about the wines.  I seemed to be one of the few who stumbled over the names of the wines and wineries.

Dietrich told me that "Slovenians like their white wines aromatic."  "Aromatic" and "floral" kept popping up in my tasting notes so much I was beginning to feel I had a tired palate that day.  There were plenty of "nutty" flavors on hand, too - sometimes going hand in hand with the floral aspect.  Grapes like Yellow Muscat and Malvasia are used quite a bit in the whites, but we also see a lot of Ravan (formerly Tocai Friulano,) Rebula (known as Ribollo in Italian,) Pinela and Pinot Gris.  Chardonnay and Riesling also turn up from time to time.  It's worth noting, there were only a handful of wines poured which sold for more than $20 per bottle.

We started with a couple of nice sparkling wines produced by Kogl, in Eastern Slovenia.  One was made using Riesling, Yellow Muscat, Chardonnay and Furmint grapes, while the other was all Pinot Noir.  Both were toasty, and the latter showed a darker fruit flavor.

The western part of Slovenia was represented by Kabaj and Batic, which poured whites that are largely nutty tasting and reds that are lean, acidic and slightly tart.  I don't know if it has been tried, but cold-climate producers in the U.S. should get some cuttings.  My favorite Slovenian white was the Batic 2008 Pinela, a funky and complex wine showing straw and guava flavors.  I was wowed by the Kabal '08 Merlot - smokey and tart on the nose with great dark fruit and acidity on the palate.  Dietrich says, "it's still very young."  The Batic '09 Cabernet Franc is showing beautifully, with red fruit and an herbal note.  It is quite expressive.

Croatia is crazy about Malvasia.  Examples from Coronica, Terzolo and Piquentum exhibited savory tendencies that are irresistible.  As for the Croatian reds, Stoka's '09 Teran provided a hard edge for the raspberry fruit.  Dingac Winery puts the minerals up front in their '10 Peljesac and throws in some spice for their '08 Postup, a single-vineyard Plavic Mali wine from high up on a hillside.

Milos scores with their '08 Plavac and '05 Stagnum, two reds with great acidity and an amazingly light touch with the fruit.  Both are extremely focused wines.

Tastes of tapas were served by the crew at Bacaro LA.  A crostini with salmon and red onion on a spead of parsley cream cheese was a hit, and so was the one with blue cheese, apple and pepper sauce.  A panini of mozzarella and rosemary honey was reordered quickly, while a morsel featuring eggplant, sea salt and basil also had many fans.

Danny was the guy in charge, and he told me they had been open there - just south of the Santa Monica Freeway near downtown Los Angeles - for about five years.  He says Bacaro has a full house nearly every night, with grad students and profs from USC joined by locals and folks from as far away as Santa Monica.  Their small plates menu is delicious, and their wines keep things interesting.  Danny says that's why the wines imported by Blue Danube are such a good fit there.  They complement the food in taste as well as spirit.


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Blood Of The Vines: 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea

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Sitting around drinking squid ink was never even a consideration for me, but the dinner table scene in "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea" shows a few wine glasses.  Given Captain Nemo's love of harvesting only from the ocean, I would love to know where the sea grapes grow.  That would take oceanic influence to a whole new level.

Animation was Disney's only special effect until "20,000 Leagues..." came around.  Well, that and Thurl Ravenscroft’s voice.  The Magic Kingdom's first foray into live action spent its over-budget effects money wisely.  The giant squid is superb; but even though he has eight arms, he has no lines.  He’d look good cut into pieces and deep fried, with a side of marinara sauce and some Sangiovese, or Alto Adige Riesling.

Kirk Douglas looks like he might have been working out at Nautilus, not riding around the world in one.  His character, Ned Land, is one of those over-the-top rowdy guys of which Disney never tired.  Annoying sea shanties, poor table manners and an irrepressible urge to do the wrong thing at the wrong time are all qualities that keep the wheels turning in a Disney film.  It's no shock to find him getting drunk in one scene, and even less of one to see him fall asleep with the sort of look on his face that a drunk can have only in a Disney movie.

James Mason and Peter Lorre's voices always make me think of Ed Sullivan, who featured an impressionist each week on his show offering his turn on both.  And Lorre plays his faithful servant role for some pretty good laughs.  He looks like he expects to be pistol whipped by Humphrey Bogart at any moment.

I couldn’t find any underwater wine to pair with “20,000 Leagues...” - Nemo took the secret of that undersea vineyard to his grave - but the Nautilus does make a pass near New Zealand, where today Nautilus wine is found.  Their Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay are good choices to pair with calamari - giant or not.

Sea if these float your boat:

Holus Bolus Wine - This Lompoc winery has an octopus label adorning several Santa Barbara County Syrahs as well as a Roussanne, in case you can't decide whether to have red or white with your cephalopod.

Eight Arms Cellars - A one man operation in Berkeley - that man wishes he had 8 arms with which to get all his work done.  Nemo wished he were similarly equipped to keep Kirk Douglas under control.


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Refugio Ranch Ineseño 2009, Santa Ynez Valley

Here’s a nice way to expand your ability to recognize grapes in a blend.  When you find a blend on a wine list with no explanation of which grapes are used in making it, order the wine and try to figure it out.  I wasn’t familiar with the Refugio Ranch Ineseño when I ordered it.  It’s a white wine from the Santa Ynez Valley selling for $10 by the glass - that’s all the wine list offered.

I know there’s a lot of Sauvignon Blanc grown in the Santa Ynez Valley, so I thought that might be a good starting point.  I eliminated that grape right away, though, due to a lack of grassy and tropical aromas and flavors.

Chardonnay?  It’s possible, but the fruitiness takes a back seat to salinity.  Hmm.  Roussanne?  Maybe, but there’s a lot of fruit in there, too.  Roussanne/Chardonnay?  I don’t feel it.  A creamy mouthfeel... Viognier?

The Refugio Ranch Ineseño has a green tint in the glass and offers a savory nose of minerals, melons and spice.  Some green notes waft in and out.  The palate shows a nice salinity, almost like a Vermentino.  Cantaloupe and a buttery note add complexity.  The acidity is very nice, despite the creamy consistency.  It hits the New England clam chowder just right, and also plays well with the bacon, lettuce, tomato and avocado sandwich.

Ineseño is a blend of Santa Ynez Valley Roussanne and Viognier.  It’s aged on the lees for 15 months in 20% French oak barrels of different types.

The Refugio Ranch - once cattle land - now features vineyards dominated by Syrah, Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier.  They also grow Roussanne, Petite Sirah, Semillon, Sangiovese, Grenache and Malvasia Bianca.  The ranch is owned by the Gleason family, who employ winemaker Ryan Deovlet.  The vineyards are in the eastern part of the Santa Ynez Valley, but the Refugio Ranch tasting room is at the corner of Grand Avenue and Highway 154 in Los Olivos.

The meaning of Ineseño?  It is a dialect once spoken by the Chumash Indians who lived along the Santa Ynez River.


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Domaine des Sénéchaux Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2009

Wine produced in France’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape region of the Rhone Valley always tastes like something special.  Domaine des Sénéchaux dates all the way back to the 1300s.  It’s the oldest in the appellation, which is saying a lot.

The Domaine’s red wine is made from 90% Grenache, 5% Syrah and 5% Mourvedre, with some other varieties possibly blended in with the Mourvédre.  It is aged for 12 to 15 months in used French oak.

The wine gives a deep purple appearance in the glass, with brick around the edges.  The nose is amazing - cassis, lilac, cedar box, wood spice and a meaty note combine for a very complex bouquet.  The palate shows great grip and acidity, with flavors of dark fruit, tobacco and peppery spices.  The power of this wine is fully apparent upon the first sip.

Sénéchaux, by the way, refers to Middle Ages judicial administrators in southern France.  In the northern part of the country, they would have been bailiwicks.

This wine was provided for review by Wine Chateau, an online retailer based in New Jersey.  They have been offering the $66 wine at $35 recently - quite a deal.


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California Wines Road Trip Tasting Event

Wine country is not a long drive from Los Angeles.  In Southern California, though, drives have a way of becoming long even when they aren't supposed to be.

Wine Institute staged a wine tasting event on September 6, 2012, that left the driving to the wineries.  The California Wine Road Trip tasting event brought the wines to Los Angeles.  Actually, to the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills.  The Verandah Room - with its part outside, part inside design - is a great place for a wine tasting event, even on a hot and muggy afternoon.

Different California wine regions were laid out at their own tables, so one could get a glimpse of a whole region while standing still.  Here are some highlights from my own tasting notes.

Lake County
Rosa D'Oro Vineyards Aglianico 2010 - A big, earthy, funky nose shows strong minerality.  Great flavors of red fruit, candy finish and firm but smooth tannins.

Six Sigma Ranch Tempranillo 2008 - Tastes cherry delicious, with great acidity.  Nice touch with the oak spice.

Livermore Valley

Fenestra Winery Pinot Gris 2010 - Earthy peach aromas, with minerals shading the fruit on the palate.  Good acidity.  Really nice touch of oak.

Mitchell Katz Winery Sangiovese 2010 - Smokey, rosy cherries all over the place.  Great acidity.

Steven Kent Winery Lineage 2009 - A blend of Bordeaux grapes from the east end of Livermore Valley.  Big fruit, very smooth, tart finish lasts forever.  Steven Kent Mirassou said he had been on the road for several days, and the wine was just beginning to show like he wanted it to.  It was showing very well.

Wente Vineyards Morning Fog Chardonnay 2010 - Pears, melons and apples.  Oak just right. Great acid.  100 year-old vines.  Wente claims to have done the first bottled Chardonnay in California.

Lodi

McCay Cellars Rosé 2011 - Carignane is the heart of this rosé.  It's not done in the saignée method, where the juice is bled off in the making of a red wine.  This is intended to be rosé all the way.  The Carignane is picked from an old field blend vineyard where the grapes were conveniently laid in rows, more or less.  Some Grenache, which imparts a bright cherry flavor, comes from a different vineyard.  Michael McCay talked about micro climates and how the ocean cools an area 60 miles inland with breezes through the delta.
One of my favorite wines of the event.

Peltier Station Winery hy.brid Vermentino 2011 - Notes of the earth rather than the ocean, as is found in the Italian version of the grape. Nice acid, minerals.

Monterey

Bernardus Winery Fairview Pinot Noir 2009 - From Fairview Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands. Subtle tannins.

Paso Robles

Austin Hope Wines Grenache 2010 - Brilliant fruit and acidity.

Justin Vineyards Icosoles 2009 - Extremely fruity nose, big dark fruit flavors and great tannins. Steak, please.

Villa Creek Cellars Rosé -  Grenache, Counoise, Mourvedre and Roussanne combine for a smooth and refreshing wine. The acidity comes on the finish.

Tablas Creek Vineyard Cotes de Tablas Blanc 2010 - Fantastic minerals and salinity from a four-grape blend: Viognier, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne and Marsanne.

San Luis Obispo County

Tangent Winery Albarino 2011 - Great floral nose.

Zocker Winery Gruner Veltliner 2011 - Floral meets mineral on the nose, more minerals on the palate.  Acidity really zips.

Saucelito Canyon Vineyard and Winery Cotes de Blanc 2011 - Roussanne, Marsanne and Grenache Blanc blend shows big minerals.

Santa Barbara County

Brewer-Clifton Chardonnay 2010 - Great, smokey oak bouquet, fruit forward and brilliant acidity. What more do you want?

Buttonwood Farm Winery Cabernet Franc 2009 - Beautiful red fruit and great acidity.

Foxen Winery Syrah 2010 - Great Rhone funk shows on the nose.  Dark fruit, nice grip and a fabulous finish.

Margerum Wines M5 2009 - Doug Margerum adds Counoise and Cinsault to the standard GSM mix and gets an herbal wave over red fruit on the nose, with a tart edge to the flavors and extremely nice acidity.  Huge tannins: beware the brawn!

Temecula

South Coast Winery GVR - Grenache Blanc, Viognier and Roussanne combine in a tasty mash up of flowers and nuts.  It's mostly stainless steel, with just a small portion of the Viognier fermented in oak.  Really refreshing.

Palumbo Family Vineyards Merlot 2009 - A 100% varietal wine this 2009 effort shows smokey roses on the nose, with earth and cherry cola flavors.  The tannins and acidity are fantastic.


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Blood Of The Vines: His Girl Friday

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Cary Grant has tussled with wine on the silver screen in “Arsenic and Old Lace” and “Notorious,” to name a couple.  But whenever I see Cary Grant in a movie, it always seems to me that he should be holding a glass of something elegant.  Even as a fast-talking newspaperman in “His Girl Friday,” he looks incomplete without a drink.

If you’ve ever tried to hire back someone you had already fired, you get an idea of the job Grant has before him.  His ex-wife and former employee at the newspaper doesn’t want a Continuation of Benefits package.  In fact, she’s set to marry another man, a guy who looks like “that guy in the movies, what’s his name, Ralph Bellamy.”

Elegance has a hard time gaining a foothold in a newspaper office.  The newspapermen - and women - I’ve known have been elegant enough to hide a hip flask in their desks.  They also received shipments of their personal pornography at work and bills with nasty notes written on them indicating that payment may have been a tad slow in coming.  Only a newspaperman could devise an elaborate code for phrases spoken in the crudest language imaginable.

Cary Grant is the polar opposite, even while stopping at nothing to get his ex back on the team.  He uses the hallmark phrase, “Anytime, anyplace, anywhere” to describe how he still feels about his ex-wife, Hildy.  That’s a novel approach to divorce, even in 1940.  Isn’t it usually, “never, nowhere, no way?”

At lunch it’s Hildy, her ex-husband and her groom-to-be.  That’s a cozy table.  You’d think there would be some drink orders in that situation, but the waiter just pours three waters.  At least he has the decency to offer to put rum in the coffee, and they have the decency to accept.

Rosalind Russell, as Hildy, has her trademark patter running in high gear.  Her street-smart elegance is a word-for-word match with Grant’s.  She may not be a Pulitzer prize winner, but “she’ll do till one comes along.”

Bedford Winery Cabernet Sauvignon makes a nice match for “His Girl Friday.”  From the winery’s notes: “Rich... impeccably well-mannered, everything in its proper place.”  No wonder they call it the Cary Grant of Cabernets.

Fridays Creek Winery - It’s in Maryland, so good luck getting your hands on that Seyval Blanc if you're not an East Coaster.

How can you go wrong with a Rosalind Russell?  Bartender, it's a tasty little recipe involving Aquavit and sweet vermouth.  Cheers!

The Cary Grant Cocktail Lounge - A webpage that promises much and, unfortunately, delivers little.

Wine and Newspaper Gift Box - One of the more unusual gift ideas.  The wine, I get.  But a newspaper?  It doesn’t add much value to the package.  Hopefully it’s delivered by a wine delivery guy, not the paperboy.  That wine bottle won’t survive the toss from the street.



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Exploring Beaujolais: Beaujolais Blanc

Representatives of the Beaujolais region were kind enough to send some samples to me a while ago, most of which were - as expected - red wines made from Gamay grapes.  The 2010 Jean-Paul Brun Domaine des Terres Dorées Beaujolais Blanc Chardonnay caught my eye, as it is a white wine of Beaujolais.

Imported by Louis Dressner Selections,  this is an interesting Beaujolais wine, if owing only to the fact that it is white.  Only one percent of the wine produced in Beaujolais is white, and when it is, it's Chardonnay.  The Jean-Paul Brun domaine is located in southern Beaujolais, north of Lyons.  The wine has a low alcohol content of 12% abv, and it retails for $16.

Probably not a Chardonnay for "Chardonnay lovers" in the California sense of the phrase, the wine possesses strong minerals on the nose, with an underlay of pear, tangerine and tropicals.  The nose is predominantly earthy, as is the palate.  It's not a fruity, frilly Chardonnay at all - nor a buttery, oaky one - but a powerfully earthy and mineral-driven wine.  There's not a boatload of acidity here, which would make me like it a lot more.  It does, however, appeal to me with its sense of terroir in the flavors.  It strikes me as the kind of white wine a red wine lover might really enjoy.  Not a leisurely back porch sipper, this wine requires a bit of thought.  Which is always nice when enjoying wine.


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Chapoutier Bila-Haut Cotes du Roussillon Villages 2010

Michel Chapoutier’s wines from France's Languedoc-Roussillon region take great advantage of the earth found there.  Chapoutier credits the black and brown schist with holding the sun’s warmth.  He says the gneiss provides the minerality, while limestone and chalk soils add strength and balance.

The Bila-Haut wine is made from Syrah, Grenache and Carignane grapes grown “on the slopes of the high Agly Valley,” according to the winemaker notes.  They are hand-harvested and completely destemmed.

The wine gives a medium dark hue, very deep red in the glass.  The nose shows black cherry and anise, with a rustic sagebrush aroma also coming through.  The palate is full of dark fruit, with an earthy background.  It’s just a bit on the tart side, with a nice, long finish that has blackberry and black cherry cola lingering.  You get a lot from each of the grapes, which is always a nice find in a blend.

This wine was provided for review by Wine Chateau, an online retailer.  Regularly, it sells for $26 and has recently been on sale for $14.  Not bad for a wine rated 94 by Parker.


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Wine Country: Pennsylvania - O'Donnell Winery

The first vitis vinifera grapevines planted in Pennsylvania were put there by William Penn in the 17th century.  That’s reason enough to name the whole state after him, if you ask me.  It took about a hundred more years for the first commercial vineyard to spring up, but it was the first in the country.  Now, here’s the part where we write how Prohibition devastated the Keystone State’s wine industry.  Sadly, it wasn’t until 1968 that the state government loosened restrictions on the making and selling of wine, even if only in a very limited way.

Today, Pennsylvania’s wineries number over 160 and are largely family-owned outfits.  It’s not a bad place to grow grapes, as the northern clime is mitigated by Lake Erie and the Gulf Stream waters of the Atlantic.

Pennsylvanians claim eighth place in wine production by state, although I’ve seen lists that had them looking up at the top ten.

Norbert O’Donnell, of O’Donnell Winery, fell in love with wine while living in Washington state.  Upon his return to Pennsylvania, he missed the wines he grew to love.  So, he decided to make his own.

The winery is located in Berwick, Pennsylvania, a little bit southwest of Wilkes-Barre.  The grapes in the O’Donnell vineyard have not come in yet, so these wines are produced from grapes he sourced from the area near Erie, PA.

Rory Red - Here’s a sweet wine made from Concord grapes.  The grape millions love under the name “Welches” is a real delight here under O’Donnell’s banner.  A medium purple in the glass, there’s a slight frizzante upon pouring.  It looks rather like Pinot Noir, but the similarity ends there.  The nose comes on a bit like grape juice, but more like grape Fizzies, if you remember those.  There’s a slight tartness that tempers the sweet candy on the palate, so it’s a perfectly good table wine.  O’Donnell says, “I enjoy it chilled and even on the rocks as its lush flavors can support ice.  Very good with chocolate.”  I concur.

Snapper - This is a dry, oaked wine made from Corot Noir grapes.  It’s deep red with an extremely earthy nose - blackberries and cherries figure into the aromas as well.  The mouthfeel is medium weight with a crisp acidity, the kind of wine that takes a chill well.  The easy tannins often found in cold-climate grapes are true to form here, actually taking a backseat to the acidity.  O’Donnell recommends it with burgers on a picnic.

Slàinte - Pronounced Slawn-cha, which O’Donnell tells me is Irish for “Cheers” - is made from Geisenheim grapes.  Light and thin-skinned, these cool climate grapes originated in the Rhine region of Germany.  The pale wine has a nose that is subdued and lovely.  Peaches and apricots battle with a floral note and the aromas glide on an herbal wave.  The palate pulls a switcheroo with the fruit taking the lead and the green element accenting.  The finish turns things back around with the herbal aspect lasting long beyond the sip.  O’Donnell suggests you “drop a few fresh blueberries in the glass and enjoy them at the last sip.”  He says a fruit salad is a perfect pairing.  It’s sold as a sweet wine, but it really clocks in at off-dry to me.  It offers quite a bit more complexity than I expected from a sweet wine.

Banshee - This is an unusual Catawba wine.  Bone dry and golden, instead of sweet and red, as that grape often appears in the glass.  O'Donnell is particularly fond of this one, and it's not hard to see why.  The aromatic nose shows an earthy herbal flair, while the palate is loaded with what he calls "the mineral notes of an old world Pinot Gris and a wonderful citrus finish."  The acidity is racy and the wine feels clean in the mouth.


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Blood Of The Vines: Caddyshack

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Golfers love wine - after they are done golfing.  While they are golfing, it’s beer.  Those inconsiderate showoffs who can shoot in the 80s probably guzzle Gatorade, or Red Bull or something called “water.”  Who cares what those inconsiderate showoffs drink, though?

Golfers love "Caddyshack," too.  Even non-golfers love "Caddyshack," but let's stay on the course.  I was a golfer myself, once upon a time.  I found that the "good walk spoilt" sentiment from Samuel Clemens was too true for me to continue.  Reaching into the cooler on the golf cart was a lot more fun than reaching into my bag for a club.  I tried carrying my bag, but if I'm to enjoy a walk in the grass, I don't need a hundred pounds of clubs on my shoulder.  Especially when I only use three of them.

And, to me, a walk in the grass is seriously undermined by having to watch out that I'm not knocked unconscious by errant golf balls flying from other parts of the grass over to mine.  I do love the lingo - "your honors," "sliced," "hooked" and "in jail."  That last description - of being among too many trees to possibly hit the ball out safely - was one I used all too frequently.  It's one of the reasons I am no longer a golfer.

The first time I took my wife to a driving range - at her request, by the way - she was lining up what was to have been a mighty 75 yard drive.  Then, she looked up at the person in the next stall and turned to me with a look of astonishment.  It was O.J. Simpson.  "He really IS searching for the killer on golf courses!"  I don't think practice swings were the same for either of us after that.

As for me, my drives wouldn't drive, my chips wouldn't chip and my putts puttered out.  But enough about me.  Let's get to Bill Murray.

Murray's character - assistant greenskeeper Carl Spackler - is dim-witted and of the opinion he's a good golfer.  Those are two qualities that go together like a golf cart and a cooler of beer.  His efforts at eliminating the destructive gopher - with extreme prejudice and a lot of plastic explosives - leave the country club course looking like a nine-hole track in Palm Springs in the middle of August.

Murray's lines in the "Cinderella story" scene are said to be completely improvised.  Taking practice shots on the flowers were his idea, too.  Pairing a wine with “Caddyshack” is my job.

Canadian golfer Mike Weir owns a wine estate in the Niagara region.  A Masters champion would have ice wine running through his veins.  By the way, Weir also uses his line of wines to raise money for the Mike Weir Foundation, a charity that assists children in physical, emotional or financial need.

Other golfers with a drive for wine:

Greg Norman - The golfer known as The Shark makes a whale of good wine, be it California or Australia.

Ernie Els -  The South African golfer naturally chose the burgeoning wine region in his homeland as the base for his wines.

Nick Faldo - Australian wine from the Coonawarra region, for when you run out of Foster’s.

Luke Donald - Terlato does his Napa wines, the same outfit that fashions high end wine with Mike Ditka's name on it.

Jack Nicklaus - Terlato also handles the wine action for the Golden Bear.

Arnold Palmer - Napa Valley’s Luna Vineyards makes wine for the guy who has an iced tea drink named after him.

Annika Sorenstam - Lest we forget the LPGA, this golf wine comes from Wente Vineyards in California's Livermore Valley.  Annika shoots in the 70s; her Chardonnay shot a 92 in Wine Spectator.

Callaway Golf Balls - I’ve always thought Callaway’s golf balls were better than their wines.  At $39, they’re more expensive, too.


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Juana de Sol Reserva Malbec Mendoza 2010

In 2010, Argentina’s government named wine as the national liquor.  The list makes for some interesting reading.  Bourbon whiskey Is the national liquor of the US, while it’s vodka in Russia and Sherry in Spain.  Iceland’s national liquor is something called Black Death.  That makes the palm wine of the Phillippines sound absolutely wonderful.

Argentine wine is fascinating to me.  The wine industry there turned around completely in a decade or so to become a great source for quality wine.  Mendoza is the hottest tourist spot in Argentina now, thanks to wine.  The grape that made Argentina famous is the Bordeaux variety, Malbec.

The 2010 Juana de Sol Reserva Malbec was provided for review by Wine Chateau, a New Jersey based online wine outlet which carries wines from over 30 countries.  The lion's share of their offerings are from California and France.

A single-vineyard bottling, the Juana de Sol Reserva carries an alcohol number of 13.5% abv.  The wine is inky purple, no light gets through the glass.  It's richly aromatic, with floral notes giving way to luscious dark fruit, spices and cedar.  The palate bursts forth with plums and blackberries, a highly concentrated fruit attack.  Oak makes a play, but it knows its place.  The wine spends six months in oak, and the effect it makes is quite pleasing.  The spice and cedar - so prominent in the aromas - fall in line as flavors on the finish.


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A Picnic At Rideau Vineyard, Santa Barbara County

Sometimes the best trips to wine country are spontaneous - off-the-cuff, spur-of-the-moment, play-it-as-it-lays explorations of the magic moments that seem to lie around every bend in the road.  Denise and I woke up recently and just decided to gather our friend Guido and head up to Santa Barbara County.  It’s not that long a drive from Los Angeles - a couple of hours - and the conversation in the car makes it seem like no time at all.

Most of my excursions to the nearby wine regions are well-planned, often to the last detail.  It’s nice every now and then to throw away the itinerary, and just do whatever comes next.  That makes it truly a getaway.

Entering Santa Barbara without any plan at all, we decided that lunch would be at a picnic table instead of a restaurant.  There was a brief stop at the Trader Joe’s just off the freeway to pick up some bread, cheese, olives and an avocado.  Then off to a Santa Ynez Valley picnic at Rideau Vineyard in Solvang.

I had been to Rideau before, and remembered how pastoral the picnic area looked when a wedding party was held there.  We had it all to ourselves.  Denise loves fresh food and cheese, and I think Guido keeps the Kalamata olive trade in business all by himself.  Throw in that beautiful avocado and a glass of wine, and everybody’s happy.

The Rideau Viognier 2010 is an unoaked beauty.  It has a really nice yellow-green tint and a bouquet of tropical fruit with some vanilla custard.  Very creamy in the mouth, yet with a nice level of acidity, the palate shows rich layers of pineapple and golden apple.  An excellent pair with the baguette and goat cheese, as well as the avocado.

For the same $36, Rideau also makes a Viognier in which just under half the wine gets five months aging in neutral oak.


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Blackjack Ranch Vineyards and Winery

As often as my wine travels have taken me to Los Olivos in Santa Barbara wine country, just as often have I passed the sign for the Blackjack Ranch tasting room on Alamo Pintado Road.  Officially listed as a Solvang winery, they are located between the two towns.  On the most recent excursion, I had no itinerary to follow, so I veered off the road and up the drive to try their wines.

Roger Wisted is the owner of Blackjack Ranch and Chris Stamford is the winemaker.  Neither were in the tasting room on my visit, unfortunately.  There were highs and lows, to my palate.  Here are the wines that were on the menu that day.

Blackjack Ranch Vineyard Chardonnay Reserve 2008 
Estate Chardonnay all the way, whole cluster pressed and fermented in French oak and aged on the lees for over eight months - it should be right up my alley, but it's not.  The oak sits in the driver's seat, pushing the fruit into the back.  Apples and oak and pears and oak - it shows way too much wood for my palate.  If you like your Chardonnay big, in the old California style, this one's for you.  $35

Wilkening Vineyard Chardonnay Reserve 2007
This one is not so oaky, but the butter flavors make me expect some movie trailers to appear.  There are tropical fruit notes in there, with some nice acidity.  The vines were planted in 1981, just southwest of Los Olivos.  The Parker numbers are displayed prominently: 94+, if you're keeping score at home.  A better bet than the previous Chardonnay, and probably will play better for me closer to the holidays.  That's when the Christmas tree always makes me want a little more wood.  $35

Black Cap Chardonnay Reserve 2009
Even less oak shows in this Chardonnay, and it drinks beautifully.  Unfiltered, with brilliant acidity and bracing minerals, the peaches and pineapple flavors really shine.  Parker has favored this wine with high scores since the first vintage, in 2001.  It's produced only every three to five years.  $48

Alix de Vergy Pinot Noir 2007
Branded as a "Special Selection Reserve," the grapes come from old vines in the La Colline Vineyard in Arroyo Grande.  Rich in color, aroma and flavor, it offers a nose of clove orange and a palate of cherries and raspberries.  There is a floral element, too, a common thread which runs through the reds that I tasted.  $48

Allusion 2006
A blend of 51% Merlot, 34% Cabernet Franc and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, it has a perfumed edge to its smokiness.  Big fruit shows through from sip to finish.  One of the bargains in the rack.  $30

Double-Down Syrah 2006
A spicy nose leads to fruit and flowers on the palate, with some baking spice flavors that will also be a hit over the holidays.  Big, dark fruit comes across bright and ripe.  Another bargain.  $26

Harmonie 2004
This Bordeaux blend is 58% Cabernet Sauvignon with Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Merlot filling out the balance.  The nose is spicy and floral, with dark fruit on the palate amid some nice coffee notes.  The vintage features less Cabernet Sauvignon than usual because rains in '04 prompted an early harvest.  $35

Harmonie 2006
Good Cabernet Sauvignon in this vintage, with 84% of the blend taken by the big grape and only a little room left for Cabernet Franc and Merlot.  Oddly, the traditional notes of Cab don't show strongly.  There's more spicy florality, though.  $60

Billy Goat Hill Merlot 2005
This estate-grown wine shows more of the house bouquet - spices and flowers.  The fruit is huge, but I would have liked a little more smokiness to go with it.  $40

Maximus Syrah 2007
This is Blackjack's wine featured in "Sideways.". Miles said "It's a big one," and he was right.  Tons of dark fruit dominate the palate and spices - notably white pepper - frame it well.  It's a complex wine, one that makes me want to sit and savor it a while.  $48


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Blood Of The Vines: Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House

Wine Goes To The Movies with 

Now And Zin and Trailers From Hell.

I’ll bet if a poll were taken to determine which movie star would be the most popular companion for drinks, it would be Cary Grant.  Maybe Ray Milland.  Maybe I should go to the internet and find the conclusive answer.

Thanks for waiting.  It didn’t take long.  You know how fast that internet is.  A poll showing which celebrity is the people's choice to spend time with had Ted Nugent holding a slight edge over Anthony Bourdain, and “Storage Wars” star Barry Weiss close behind.  So, I guess there’s a pretty big difference between “movie stars” and “celebrities” these days.  Of course, being alive may make it easier to score well in those polls.  I’m sure breathing and bowhunting are all Ted Nugent has on Cary Grant.  I’ll keep looking, though.  If Mr. Grant turns up, I’ll let you know.

He does more than turn up in “Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House.”  In fact, the whole film is nothing less than a textbook on how to make a movie funny.  If I were to ask you “What’s the key element in comedy,” and you were to reply, “Timing,” that’s not comedy.  If you were to interrupt me after the word “element” and say “Timing,” that’s comedy.  The timing is the thing.  One joke can’t get out of the way fast enough to let the next one through.  Having a drink for each punchline is out of the question.  That’s an interactive game that’ll have you knee-walking before the second reel.

It’s Myrna Loy that steals the show, with the incredible monologue in which she describes colors to the paint crew.

Muriel Blandings:  “I want it to be a soft green, not as blue-green as a robin's egg, but not as yellow-green as daffodil buds. Now, the only sample I could get is a little too yellow, but don't let whoever does it go to the other extreme and get it too blue. It should just be a sort of grayish-yellow-green. Now, the dining room. I'd like yellow. Not just yellow; a very gay yellow. Something bright and sunshine-y. I tell you, Mr. PeDelford, if you'll send one of your men to the grocer for a pound of their best butter, and match that exactly, you can't go wrong! Now, this is the paper we're going to use in the hall. It's flowered, but I don't want the ceiling to match any of the colors of the flowers. There's some little dots in the background, and it's these dots I want you to match. Not the little greenish dot near the hollyhock leaf, but the little bluish dot between the rosebud and the delphinium blossom. Is that clear? Now the kitchen is to be white. Not a cold, antiseptic hospital white. A little warmer, but still, not to suggest any other color but white. Now for the powder room - in here - I want you to match this thread, and don't lose it. It's the only spool I have and I had an awful time finding it! As you can see, it's practically an apple red. Somewhere between a healthy winesap and an unripened Jonathan.”
Mr. PeDelford: “You got that Charlie?”
Charlie the Painter: “Red, green, blue, yellow, white.”

The wine pairing for such a movie is not easily pronounced.  You want something zippy enough to keep up with the dialogue, but not so zippy that it races past the action.  It should be a wine that has some depth to it, but not so complex that it takes one’s mind off the show and forces a moody rumination.  Too simple, and you’re cooked as well.  It should sort of drive right down the middle of Complexity Avenue.  As for a red or white, or even pink, the movie is in black and white so it doesn’t really matter.  Don’t take that to mean the wine doesn’t matter - of course it does.  It simply doesn’t matter if it’s red or white.  Or even pink. It should be an eminently pairable wine, in case snacks are served while viewing.  And who knows what they’ll bring, so it should go with everything.  As for flavor, that spot between the winesap and the unripened Jonathan apple sounds just right to me.

You got that, Charlie?

"Riesling."

And if you do want a snack with this movie, take Gussie’s advice: “If you ain't eatin' Wham, you ain't eatin' ham.”

Build a night around these choices:

Tin House Wine - Central Coast wines from Edna Valley and Santa Maria, they focus on Pinot Noir and Syrah.  Priced at $18-$25.

Big House Wines - We’re stretching the house theme a bit here.  The Big House referred to in the name is actually Soledad State Correctional Facility.

Sutter Home Family Vineyards - This winery has been home to White Zinfandel since they invented it.  Let’s try not to hold a grudge.

Maison Red - Washington State’s Wilridge Winery sells wine in bottles you can refill and take home.


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India’s Oven Wine Pairing Event, 9/21/12

One of the most exotic cuisines in the world, to my palate, is Indian food.  Spices like cardamom, ginger, nutmeg and turmeric mark the food and lend aromatics and flavors you’d be hard pressed to find anywhere else.  With so many different spices used - sometimes in the same dish - it can be a challenge to pair wine with Indian food.

In Los Angeles, there are numerous options for dining in Indian style.  One of my favorites is India’s Oven, located at 7233 Beverly Boulevard, just a little bit west of the New Beverly Cinema.  Kamal Singh and his staff serve home cooking, Punjabi-style - from Northern India.

How does wine fit into the Indian food scene?  Come find out.  Now And Zin and India’s Oven would love to have you come over for an Indian food and wine pairing event, Friday September 21, 2012 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.  For only $12, you can sample four of the best dishes at India’s Oven and pair them with selected wines.  Personally, I think once you try the food at India’s Oven you’ll be a regular.

The complexity of the spices and the heat of the food - if you order it that way - can make for a difficult wine pairing situation.  But it’s possible to get the wine right by looking beyond the meat/fish aspect and going with the spice makeup of the dish.

Samosas and biryani rice dishes:  Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay

Dal, coconut milk curries and chickpea curries:  Fruity reds work well - Merlot, Malbec, Pinot Noir - or silky whites like Pinot Grigio.  

Tandoori chicken:  Shiraz, Zinfandel, Pinot Noir

Saag paneer and other green dishes:  Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay

In general, when pairing wine with Indian food, you want to choose wines with a minimum of oak influence.

Save the date and come try the pairings at:

India’s Oven
7233 Beverly Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA
Friday September 21, 2012 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. 
$12 for four pairings

We hope to see you there!


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Exploring Beaujolais: Saint-Amour

Saint-Amour is one of the Beaujolais Crus, in the northern part of the Beaujolais region.  Its wines are made from Gamay grapes and are said to be of medium weight, offering spicy peach flavors.

Domaine des Billards is in the middle of the Saint-Amour cru, owned by the Barber and Teissier families.  The domaine was selling wine in the time of Louis XVI - to the King’s finance minister.  Presumably, he knew where to find the best bang for his franc.  The winery has an old, dusty record book that actually shows his purchases.

The vineyards of Domaine des Billards are composed of sandstone pebbles underneath granite outcroppings, with veins of clay below that.  The land is farmed naturally, with no herbicides used.  The wine gets 12 days of vinification and has an alcohol number at a very Beaujolais-esque 13.5%.  This wine is imported by David Bowler Wine.

This 2009 Beaujolais from Saint-Amour is quite dark - not inky, but almost.  Black plums, dark berries and spice dance over the nose, and I find those notes on the palate, too.  The bouquet reminds me of Christmas baking. Try it for the holidays instead of the lightweight Beaujolais Nouveau.  It’s a fairly weighty wine, one of the heavier Beaujolais I’ve encountered.  That, with a peppery finish and a nice acidity, might put you in mind of a Syrah.

Summer Wine: Cimarone 3CV Sauvignon Blanc 2010

Today, another in our exploration of great wines for a hot day.  Yes, I’m keeping my nose to the wet grindstone in search of true relief in the dog days of summer.  This is the last of the Now And Zin Summer Wines series.

Cimarone Estate Wines planted the 3CV Vineyard in 2001 in the warm east end of the Santa Ynez Valley.  It’s in the Happy Canyon AVA of Santa Barbara County.  The vineyard is home to Bordeaux varietals as well as some Rhone and Italian grapes.  Just over five and a half acres of the 26-acre plot is devoted to Sauvignon Blanc.

This wine is quite refreshing, especially on a hot summer day.  It’s a pale yellow in the glass and gives a nose of grapefruit, limes and wet rocks.  So far, so great.  On the palate, a very nice acidity jumps out first.  The fruit is laced with minerality, as it is on the nose.  Citrus flavors dominate, as fresh as you want them.

I’ll pair the 3CV Sauvignon Blanc with salmon, shrimp or salads.  It’s great with just a handful of almonds, too.  Enjoy, and happy Labor Day!

Five Great California Wine Country Road Trips

This is the sort of thing that makes me wish I had a lot more time on my hands.  September is California Wine Month, and Wine Institute - hard-working champion of the California Wine industry - has come up with five great wine country tours that will introduce you to California wine by roadtrip.

Each tour is a five-day trip that covers different California wine regions, from emerging treasures like the Sierra Foothills and Temecula to the well-known grape-stomping grounds like Napa, Sonoma and Paso Robles.  When combining wine tasting and cars, always remember to spit, and have a designated driver.  Look at the video, then start booking hotels.

The following trip ideas come from Wine Institute's Department of Tasting California Wine.  Fire up the GPS and let's get moving.

1) NORTH COAST
There’s nothing like a drive on California’s scenic North Coast to show you not only the Pacific Ocean’s dramatic beauty but also how profoundly it affects the region’s climate.  That coastal influence gives us San Francisco’s famous fog, towering redwood trees, and a perfect home for cool-climate grapes like Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and others.  This scenic five-day round trip from San Francisco takes you wine tasting, shopping, dining, kayaking and more.  Visit Sausalito, Muir Woods national park, quaint Mendocino and Sonoma County’s diverse wine regions.

Day One:
Start with an invigorating walk along San Francisco’s lively Fisherman’s Wharf, taking in the shops and eye-popping views of the Golden Gate Bridge, Marin Headlands, Alcatraz, and if you’re lucky, a show-stopping patch of mysterious fog.  Then put the top down and head north on Highway 101 to the artsy village of Sausalito just across the bay.  Treat yourself to a seafood lunch paired with a glass of California wine before continuing north to see some of California’s famous redwood trees at Muir Woods, a national park about 30 minutes away.  Stroll among the giants, and when your neck gives out from too much looking up, get back in the car and drive an hour north to Santa Rosa in Sonoma County.  In addition to historic Railroad Square with restaurants, shops and a California Welcome Center to help you plan your journey, Santa Rosa is a great place to spend the night, offering centralized access to various great wine regions and wine towns in Sonoma County.

Day Two:
From Santa Rosa, there are a lot of great options for how to spend the day.  In the morning, stroll Santa Rosa’s Railroad Square, and if you’re a Peanuts comic strip fan, check out the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center before heading out for lunch and wine tasting in the pastoral and picturesque Russian River Valley.  If you like to greet the morning with exercise, go to Bodega Bay (where Hitchcock filmed The Birds) for a morning kayak ride, then head to the quaint town of Occidental, Freestone, Graton or Sebastopol for lunch before tasting the cool-climate Pinot Noirs of the Sonoma Coast in the surrounding areas.  If your version of the great outdoors is to shop and dine alfresco, visit the fun wine country town squares of Sonoma to the southeast or Healdsburg to the north for lunch and shopping.  If you head to Sonoma, explore the various wineries of Sonoma Valley, also known as Valley of the Moon. If you go to Healdsburg, check out the nearby wine regions where you’ll find Alexander Valley’s rich Cabernet Sauvignons and Dry Creek Valley’s signature Zinfandels.  Overnight in Santa Rosa.

Day Three:
In the morning, take 101 North, exiting at Highway 128 at Cloverdale.  Soon you will be in Mendocino County’s wine region, a great place to stop for brunch and wine tasting.  Once in the postcard-perfect, seaside village of Mendocino, most of which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, there are many options for entertainment. You can explore the charming shops and eateries, buying your loved ones a treat at the Mendocino Chocolate Company.  You can spend the afternoon exploring via scenic Highway 1, checking out historic lighthouses, such as Point Cabrillo Light Station, which features an inn or take a picnic lunch to enjoy on the grounds of the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens.  Try hiking coastal or wooded trails such as the Van Damme Pygmy Forest Trail (in the winter months you can enjoy whale watching).  Stay overnight in a romantic B&B.

Day Four:
Head up the coast in the morning on Highway 1, passing Fort Bragg, home to the redwoods Skunk Train, and continue until you get to 101 North.  Soon you will see the awe-inspiring Avenue of the Giants, a world-famous drive through more than 51,000 acres of redwood groves. There are many quirky attractions in the area, including places you can drive through a redwood, but don’t miss Rockefeller Forest’s “Champion Redwood” at 370 feet tall.  If you have an extra day, travel north to Redwood National and State Parks for hiking and an overnight stay.  Stop for lunch as you go south on 101 in the early afternoon towards historic Ukiah, where you can check into a charming B&B and explore the area’s wineries.  If you don’t mind a slightly longer drive, before Ukiah take Highway 20 south to stay in scenic Clear Lake, the largest natural freshwater lake entirely in California and a great home base to check out wineries in the Lake County wine region, known for its delicious Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon wines.

Day Five:
Spend the morning enjoying a stroll or hike in Ukiah or Clear Lake, before making your way south towards San Francisco.  Make sure to stop in the Los Carneros wine region, which straddles both Napa and Sonoma counties.  Los Carneros, which means sheep in Spanish, is aptly named for the sheep dotting the rolling hills.  These natural weed controllers are the perfect reminder that more than 70 percent of California’s acreage participates in California’s Sustainable Winegrowing Program, the largest of its kind in the world.  As you head back to San Francisco on 101 South, you can choose among several enticing small towns in Marin County. Nestled below majestic Mt. Tamalpais, Mill Valley’s Lytton Square is reminiscent of a European village, complete with cafes, and fashionable boutiques.  With celebrity musician residents like Bonnie Raitt, Bob Weir and Sammy Hagar, it’s no surprise that Mill Valley is home to the famous Sweetwater, one of the top roots music clubs in the nation, well-known for its famous guest musicians who occasionally “drop in” for an evening to improvise.  The historic railroad town of Tiburon is reminiscent of a New England fishing village.  Its chic Main Street – filled with trendy shops, art galleries, high-end waterfront restaurants and popular casual cafes -- is known as "Ark Row" because of the 1890s recreational houseboat lifestyle enjoyed in Belvedere Cove by sea captains, Bohemian artists, and summer residents from San Francisco.  San Rafael, the oldest, largest and most culturally diverse city in Marin, boasts one-of-a kind shops, ethnic eateries and lovely Victorian buildings. Here you can also cruise down Fourth Street in San Rafael, where part of “American Graffiti” was filmed.

2) SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA

This five-day round-trip itinerary is a foodie’s paradise, with stops from San Francisco’s Chinatown and Little Italy to Berkeley, the legendary birthplace of California cuisine.  It also takes you from mountains to the sea: you’ll take in the thrilling scenery and wines of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Livermore Valley and Half Moon Bay.

Day One:
Take advantage of San Francisco’s food and wine culture.  In the late morning, try one of the city’s walking foodie tours, such as North Beach/Little Italy, Chinatown or the Mission District (Latin Quarter).  Head to Jackson Square and sample some California wines at the various wine bars.  Follow up with antique shopping in this lively neighborhood, or general shopping in Union Square.  Take a spooky night tour of Alcatraz, paired with wining and dining on Fisherman’s Wharf or nearby North Beach. Overnight in San Francisco.

Day Two:
Spend the morning at a San Francisco museum or two, then put your day in gear and head east over the Bay Bridge to charming university town Berkeley.  Take a guided or self-guided walking tour of the city’s famous Gourmet Ghetto, sampling the neighborhood’s culinary offerings.  If you’re not too full, don’t miss Chez Panisse, the landmark eatery owned by Alice Waters, pioneer of California’s locavore movement and California cuisine.  For those who love wine bike tours, skip Berkeley and head straight to Oakland, where you can do a guided or self-guided biking tour of various urban wineries, including lunch.  For dinner head back to San Francisco, leave the car at the hotel and walk to any number of eateries, where you can enjoy great California wine paired with regional cuisine.  Overnight in San Francisco.

Day Three:
After a leisurely breakfast of San Francisco’s famous sourdough pancakes, drive southeast to beautiful Livermore Valley, one of California’s oldest wine regions.  Enjoy lunch in charming and historic downtown Livermore, filled with quaint shops, eateries and galleries.  Enjoy wine tasting downtown at one of the tasting rooms or wine bars, or check out one of the local renowned wineries, some of which date back to the 1880s!  In the late afternoon, drive 40 minutes southwest to San Jose for fun and dinner on Santana Row, a Mediterranean-style shopping and entertainment district filled with chic boutiques, trendy eateries, hotels, wine bars and lounges. Overnight in San Jose.

Day Four:
In the morning visit a museum or gallery in the charming, tree-lined streets of downtown San Jose, all within a quick stroll of each other.  Or go for chills and thrills at the spooky Winchester Mystery House, featured on many haunted and mystery television shows.  At lunchtime, stop by the beautiful wine country town of Los Gatos for a bite and a short stroll.  Then go wine tasting in the Santa Cruz Mountains, one of California’s first designated wine regions and an area rich with wooded peaks and small vineyards tucked into quiet hillsides.  Noted by “Food and Wine” as a region to watch for Pinot Noir, the region boasts smaller wineries known for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay on the west side, and Cabernet, Merlot and Zinfandel on the east.  Dinner and overnight in Santa Cruz.

Day Five:
If you like to start the morning with an adrenaline rush, head to Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, California’s oldest amusement park.  Or if you’re more in the mood for hiking, head north on Highway 1 for a coastal trek at Año Nuevo State Park, where you can catch a rare glimpse of elephant seals.  Travel north on Highway 1 to the inviting Half Moon Bay, a crescent-shaped bay filled with surfers and fishermen.  Watch the surfers and enjoy lunch, wine tasting and shopping on Main Street.  Return to San Francisco for the night.

3) NAPA VALLEY TO THE HIGH SIERRAS

This adventurous round-trip itinerary starts in Napa Valley, any wine lover’s dream destination, where exquisite Cabernet Sauvignons await alongside pampering hot springs and bike tours.  Then it heads for the hills, exploring Gold Country and the Sierra Foothills for gondola rides, panoramic views and off-the-beaten-path wineries before winding back down to earth in Lodi, home to some of California’s oldest Zinfandel vines, as well as the Madera Wine Trail.

Day One:
Travel about an hour northeast of San Francisco to delightful downtown Napa.  Stroll the shops and tasting rooms, then enjoy a gourmet snack paired with local wines at the Oxbow Public Market.  Head up Highway 29 and get an eyeful of scenic Napa Valley, stopping at renowned wineries for tasting and fun facts about Napa’s 16 smaller appellations.  Take a break in charming wine country towns, filled with great restaurants, artisan food and gift shops, tasting rooms and wineries, such as Yountville and St. Helena.  Next, head north to Calistoga, where you can enjoy strolling the shops of Lincoln Avenue or take a guided biking tour of local wineries.  Or if you’d prefer some pampering, take advantage of one of several hot springs resorts, where you can relax in a natural hot spring or enjoy a rejuvenating massage or mud bath.  Dinner and overnight in Calistoga.

Day Two:
It’s worth the early morning rise to check out a hot air balloon ride over Napa Valley, which culminates with a brunch paired with local wines.  Next, explore the Bothe-Napa Valley State Park, or spend the afternoon heading south on Napa’s other main artery, the Silverado Trail—once the only road to Calistoga’s silver mines and patrolled by bandits Black Bart and Buck English—to check out more wineries or any of the cool wine country towns you missed on Day One.  As late afternoon approaches, head northeast about 90 minutes to Sacramento, taking scenic Highway 128 past Lake Berryessa over to hook up with Interstate 80.  Explore historic Old Town and enjoy a trendy eatery and nightclub/comedy club downtown.

Day Three:
Spend the morning at a museum, such as Crocker Art Museum, one of the leading art museums in the state, the California State Railroad Museum in Old Town, or the Discovery Museum Science & Space Center.  Head 50 minutes northeast to the hidden gem Sierra Foothills wine region, known for Zinfandel, Barbera, Syrah, Viognier and incredible scenery.  A great place to stop first at the Gold Rush town of Placerville for lunch, shopping and winery tasting rooms. (If you’re visiting in late spring when the snowpack melts, grab a sandwich at a deli and go whitewater rafting nearby.)  To explore more winery activities, you can’t go wrong with El Dorado County wineries or other Sierra Foothill regions such as Amador County, Calaveras County, Nevada County and Placer County.  Spend the evening an hour northeast in beautiful South Lake Tahoe, filled with great restaurants, glittering casinos and shows.  Overnight in South Lake Tahoe.

Day Four:
In the morning, ride the Heavenly Ski Resort Gondola for panoramic views of Lake Tahoe.  Spend the morning hiking, or if you’d rather get on the road straight away, head southwest 90 minutes on Highway 88 for lunch in the fun Gold Rush Town of Jackson.  Shop or savor a tasting room in town, or check out a winery or two in Calaveras County, which offers 21 tasting rooms in historic gold rush towns bordered by giant sequoia trees—and was made famous by Mark Twain’s story, “The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.”  If wine tasting in town is enough for you, and you want to live a bit of history, try panning for gold in Pine Grove.  Head about 45 minutes southwest to Lodi, home to some of the oldest Zinfandel vines in California.  Stop in the Lodi Wine & Visitor Center, which has an expansive tasting bar featuring a wide selection of regional wines, educational demonstration vineyard on grape growing and a gift shop featuring handcrafted products and Lodi giftware.  If you’re out of time, make a plan to go there in the morning.  Overnight at a local B&B.

Day Five:
Armed with information from the Lodi Wine & Visitor Center, explore the Lodi wine region’s wineries, enjoying lunch and shopping in picturesque downtown.  Another way to explore the region is the Lodi Wine & River Tours, where you glide down the beautiful Mokelumne River while sipping local wines and looking for birds and other river creatures.  If you have time to venture further two hours south to check out the dessert wines of Madera, gateway to Yosemite National Park, the Madera Wine Trail is a great wine adventure.  Spend the evening in San Francisco.

4) CENTRAL COAST – HIGHWAY 1

Nothing says California more than driving a convertible with the top down up Highway 1.  With the ocean in view, wind in your hair and wine on your mind, this trip takes you from Santa Barbara’s “Sideways” movie territory to the cool-climate wines of San Luis Obispo and red-wine mecca Paso Robles, then swings back to the ocean and beautiful Monterey before ending in San Francisco.  Besides wining and dining, there’s a zip line, hiking, Hearst Castle, Big Sur, Cannery Row and the Monterey Bay Aquarium to interest you!

Day One:
From Los Angeles, head north on California’s iconic Highway 1 about two hours to Santa Barbara County, whose wine regions were featured prominently in the hit film “Sideways.”  Visit Old Mission Santa Barbara, one of the state’s most famous spots on California’s Historic Mission Trail.  Stop for lunch and shopping on beautiful State Street in downtown Santa Barbara.  Make sure to sample regional wines at one of the street’s many tasting rooms. Dinner and overnight in Santa Barbara.

Day Two:
In the morning, head north to the unique historic Danish town of Solvang.  Enjoy breakfast and coffee at a Danish bakery or café, followed by shopping for souvenirs and admiring the Old World architecture.  Do a self-guided Sideways Tour of Santa Barbara’s wine regions, including a stop for lunch at the Hitching Post, famous for Santa Maria-style barbecue and featured in the film.  After the tour, head north on Highway 1 for a seafood dinner in downtown Pismo Beach.  Overnight in Pismo Beach.

Day Three:
Today, you have a choice to make: stay near the coast or head inland?  To keep it coastal, spend the morning in downtown San Luis Obispo, featuring museums, Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, the world-famous bubblegum alley and many shops.  Enjoy lunch in one of the renowned restaurants before exploring various San Luis Obispo wineries including those in Edna Valley.  Your other great way to spend the day is to head to downtown Paso Robles for shopping and dining, followed by winery hopping in the Paso Robles wine region, known for day/night temperature swings that create bold red wines.  If you’re seeking a more adventurous way to explore wine country, go zip lining over the historic Santa Margarita Ranch or hiking on a coastal trail.  Enjoy dinner and overnight in the charming seaside town of Cambria.

Day Four:
In the morning, stroll the shops in Cambria and head 15 minutes north to San Simeon. Sneak a rare peek at elephant seals before heading to the world-famous Hearst Castle, the former home of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst.  You can see his wine cellars on the Kitchen & Cottages tour, and taste his descendants’ wines nearby at Hearst Ranch Winery.  Head an hour north on Highway 1 to Big Sur, the most famous stretch of the road, featuring dramatic oceanfront cliffs.  Enjoy lunch at one of Big Sur’s scenic eateries, followed by a short hike among the woods and beaches of Andrew Molera State Park.  If you don’t feel like hiking, take a short drive north to historic Cannery Row in Monterey, made famous in the John Steinbeck novel. Stop by the Taste of Monterey, the Official Regional Wine Visitors’ Center, where you can learn more about Monterey Bay’s unique “Blue Grand Canyon” and how it creates a unique cooling effect on the vineyards.  Sample cool-climate wines from throughout the Monterey County wine region and plan your explorations for the following day.  Dinner at Monterey’s Cannery Row or nearby Fisherman’s Wharf areas.  Overnight in Monterey.

Day Five:
Enjoy the morning at the world-renowned Monterey Bay Aquarium, followed by lunch in the elegantly charming Carmel-by-the-Sea, filled with great galleries and eateries.  Spend a couple of hours exploring nearby wineries before heading two hours north to end your day in San Francisco.

5) SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE:
HOLLYWOOD AND GRAPEVINE

For a wine lover, there’s more to Southern California than blue skies, surf and sunshine—it’s full of surprising wine regions, where winemaking has been taking place since the late 1700s.  On this five-day round trip, you’ll hit hot spots like Malibu and Palm Springs while also exploring wineries in Temecula, Cucamonga and even San Diego and Malibu.

Day One:
Start the morning with a guilty pleasure.  Head to Grauman's Chinese Theater on the Hollywood Boulevard strip, and see how your hands and feet measure up to the autographed imprints of Hollywood legends.  There you can sign up for Starline Tour’s latest two-hour tour of the celebrity homes and hangouts, the TMZ Tour.  This hilarious tour, created by TMZ producers, shares insider information and the guides are on the lookout to film celebrities in action.  Following the tour, grab some lunch and visit the intimate, high-elevation wineries in Malibu and other neighborhoods of Greater Los Angeles.  Dine and play at the Santa Monica Pier and Third Street Promenade in the late afternoon and evening. Overnight in Los Angeles.

Day Two:
Drive two hours south to playful San Diego, where there are many ways to enjoy fun in the sun.  Start in magnificent Balboa Park, the nation’s largest urban cultural park, boasting 15 major museums, several performing arts venues, lovely gardens and many other cultural and recreational attractions, including the San Diego Zoo.  Options for the afternoon include Mission San Diego de Alcala, home to the oldest grapes in California, or visiting some of the San Diego area’s 50 wineries, known for Merlot and Chardonnay.  End the night with dinner and nightlife in the historic Gaslamp Quarter downtown. Overnight in San Diego.

Day Three:
There are several “must see” attractions to explore in the morning.  In addition to the zoo, Sea World and Legoland are sure bets.  In the afternoon, head off the beaten path (about an hour northeast) to the fast-growing Temecula wine region, which has been growing grapes since the late 1700s.  Tempered by coastal fog, this warm region is best known for its Italian and Rhône varietals—and its annual Balloon and Wine Festival.  Enjoy dinner and overnight in charming and historic downtown Temecula.

Day Four:
A popular pursuit is an early morning hot air balloon ride or biplane ride over Temecula Valley, which gives you a great view of the local wine country and ends with a champagne brunch.  If you’d rather sleep in, spend time exploring the shops of downtown Temecula.  In the afternoon, don’t miss the amazing bargains at Desert Hills Premium Outlets on the way to Palm Springs.  Enjoy the impressive collection of Art Deco architecture in downtown Palm Springs, as well as great restaurants for dinner.  If you’re feeling lucky, head to one of the many casinos, or fun evening shows like the campy Palm Springs Follies, a Broadway-caliber celebration of the music, dance, and comedy of Mid-Century America with a delightful cast old enough to have lived it.  Overnight in Palm Springs.

Day Five:
If you’re feeling adventurous, take a morning desert jeep tour, with stops at oases, ghost towns and the San Andreas Fault.  If you’re feeling more laid-back, travel to the eerily beautiful Joshua Tree National Park, made famous by the top-selling U2 album.  You can drive through the park at your own pace, but don’t miss the ranger-led tour of Keyes Ranch inside, which lets you get a hands-on glimpse of the tough pioneer lifestyle in this land shaped by strong winds, unpredictable torrents of rain, and climatic extremes.  On the way back towards Los Angeles, check out a winery or two in the Cucamonga Valley, which preserves the past with historic ranches and vineyards and is known for Port-style wines and old-vine Zinfandel.

For more ideas on these and other great California wine country road trips, including California wines, wine regions and winery activities—from tastings to tours, picnics, concerts, bocce ball and more—go to Wine Institute’s lifestyle and travel website.


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Blood Of The Vines: Cool Hand Luke

Wine Goes to the Movies 

with Now And Zin and Trailers From Hell

As we inch our way toward autumn, wine lovers turn their thoughts to harvest time.  Visions of grape pickers working the vineyards fill our heads, lovingly fondling each cluster of Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon before gently plucking it from the vine and sending it on its way to the sorting table.

At the beginning of "Cool Hand Luke," Paul Newman's character is drunk and lovingly pruning the head from a parking meter.  Two things you should never say to a policeman: “Hold my beer” and “Are you the guy from the Village People?”

As a result of his ill-advised adventure, Newman gets to join a group of men working in the fields.  They don't get paid even a low wage.   They work in chains and are watched over by a prison guard with mean sunglasses and a shotgun.  At a regular job, he’d be called mid-management.  Where's our shop steward?

These days, a lot of grape picking occurs at night.  Tractors with enough light banks to illuminate a ballpark make it easy for the harvesters to work when it’s cool.  It sounds very kind-hearted, until you realize it’s done that way for the benefit of the grapes, not the pickers.

I'm thinking it's jailbreak time - make a run for the nearest wine tasting event and hang out near the media.   In your dirty, sweaty, tattered rags, you'll blend right in.   But remember to sip, swirl and spit - otherwise, what we have here is... failure to expectorate.

I once worked for a guy who reminded me so much of Strother Martin that it was creepy.   We made many jokes that played off the “failure to communicate” line.   I was always ready to turn in my notice at the first sight of a new hire with badass sunglasses.

Paul Newman’s chain gang had to work all morning, into the blazing midday and right through the blistering afternoon.  A fella could really use a cool, refreshing Sauvignon Blanc after a day like that.  Or at least a Budweiser.   In prison, bread and water will have to do.  Come to think of it, I prefer water to Budweiser.

The prisoners in “Cool Hand Luke” live in eight by ten foot cells.  At work, you get a six by eight cubicle.   Good behavior in prison gets you time off.  On the job it gets you more work.  In prison, Luke is hanging around so many felons, he thought he was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals.

The wine pairing for “Cool Hand Luke” is so easy, even Dragline could have thought of it.  Newman’s Own Wine offers a Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon - all tasting great and benefitting charities.

The Prisoner - Predominantly Zinfandel, with a chain gang of other grapes mixed in, this Dave Phinney favorite is one to take with you if you’re going away for a long time.

Communication Block Wine - A Mt. Veeder red blend from Lampyridae Vineyards, this wine is a benefit, too.   It helps kids who depend on technology for communication..

Keel and Curley Florida Blueberry Wine - Don’t make that Jägermeister face.  They make it sweet or dry.   And it’s really good.

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Summer Wine: Tercero Rosé 2008

Larry Schaffer of Tercero Wines does a great job making rosés, a fact that gets overshadowed by the fine work he does on his red wines.  Every year, I look forward to tasting his most recent pink wine - they are always interesting.

I managed to pick up a couple of bottles of the Tercero Rosé from the 2008 vintage this summer.  They may have been the last two bottles in the house at the Tercero tasting room in Los Olivos.  If you have a bottle that you forgot to drink, it’s showing very well right now.

A blend of 90% Grenache and 10% Mourvedre, this Santa Barbara County registers an alcohol number of 13.5% abv.  I believe it sold for around $15.  Schaffer’s present vintage rosé offers much more Mourvèdre.

The ‘08 is medium pink in the glass, with a nose of melon, strawberry, cherry and hint of funky earth lurking in the shadows.  There are plenty of shadows here, as the palate is quite complex.  There’s fruit laced with black tea, and an especially nice zing of acidity.  The tea flavor is something I don't get very often in rosés, particularly young ones.  Just a few years of aging has given the wine quite a bit of complexity.