Montevertine 2004 Sangiovese at Diner Restaurant, Williamsburg

My good friend and fellow wine lover Vanessa was in town from London this week and she came out to visit us in Williamsburg and see our son Wylie.  After he went to bed, Vanessa and I went around the corner to Diner, (which quintessentially represents the neighborhood I think), as I wanted Van to get a sense of where we lived.  Plus she was craving comfort food as she was missing home, so there you go.  Anyway, the wine list is not huge at Diner, but the selection is usually pretty good, although I think the reds tend to be on the lighter side, and typically from alternative French appellations.  Hence the large number of Neal Rosenthal wines on the menu.  Neal Rosenthal is a famous New York wine importer.  He is interviewed in the movie Mondovino at Diner, so there must be some connection there!  We ended up ordering the 2004 Montevertine Sangiovese.  I love Sangiovese, which is the primary grape used in the region of Tuscany in Italy, and is the grape that is used to make Chianti.  I had a lentil salad with fresh herbs and Vanessa had the Romaine Salad with a poached egg.  For supper Vanessa had the steak and fries, and I had coq au vin.  The food all around was fantastic as usual, we both thoroughly enjoyed our meal and the Montevertine was a good foil to our rich dishes.  Vanessa and I have shared a lot of great wine together around the world and our evening at Diner was no exception.  Cheers Van!

Montevertine 2004 Sangiovese  $45
This is a nice traditional style Sangiovese.  There are light flavors of plum and cherry, it is medium bodied and garnet in color.  There are a decent amount of tannins and the acidity is solid.  I think it is still a bit young, will probably be better with a few more years in bottle, but still an attractive wine, though not super memorable.  Solid.  87 Points.

Northern Italy: Barolo vs. Amarone

We had a couple of wines from Northern Italy this weekend.  They were both tasted with an aged Gouda from Bedford Cheese Shop and dark chocolate with sea salt, almonds, and olive oil from Mast Brother's Chocolate.  The wines could not be more different in style and taste, but it was prudent to have the 2005 Terre del Barolo first as it is more delicate than the 2006 La Vigilia Amarone.  In fact, you can't really even compare the two wines they are so different in style.  Amarone is a heavy weight, while the Barolo is more fly weight, for example.  They both went well with our chocolate and cheese though. 

Terre del Barolo 2005 Barolo  $30.00
This was an impulse purchase at Uva Wines in Brooklyn.  I thought $30 buck for a 2005 Barolo, let's give it a whirl.  I did find this bottle of wine a bit cheaper on the internet, by the way.  But the description they had at Uva hooked me, "Yes, this really tastes like Barolo, even at this price."  And, in fact, it's true.  This is Barolo at $30, or less if you shop around.  It was not the biggest or most interesting Barolo ever, but it would easily pair with a nice bowl of pasta or a pizza.  It was light to medium in body, and there were aromas of fig, tar, caramel, and sour cherry.  The acidity was very fresh as well and cut the richness of the Gouda cheese.  If I could get this a bit cheaper I would consider keeping a couple bottles around.  Normally a decent 2005 Barolo needs a few more years to mature, since this one is on the lighter side, I think it is drinking well now.  86-87 Points.


La Vigilia Amarone Valpolicella 2006  $25.00
This is a bottle my good friend Aaron recently brought over.  We did not get a chance to drink it together, and I could not resist cracking into it.  We both really love Amarone, though it is a wine which can be difficult to pair, as it has a very distinctive character due to how it is made.  But it went well with the cheese and chocolate, but in a more dessert-like fashion.  Amarone is different from other wines, in that the grapes are partially dried prior to pressing, as opposed to being pressed right away with most wines.  This concentrates the sugars and gives the wine a very concentrated sweet fruit character.  It tastes like you added a dash of port to a red wine, for example.  It is a wine that drinks great on its own, but it is a big wine.  14.5% alcohol.  The La Vigilia had a dark redish brown brick color, there is a nose of cherry pie, petrol, and spiced holiday cake.  There is also a rich vanilla note, and a slight tartness and slightly dry tannins.  Could even use a couple more years to come together, but delicious now.  90-91 Points.

South African Wine Safari Tasting at Union Square Wines

Coming off of the fabulous Magnum Opus dinner, I didn't think my week could get much better.  But it did.  Andre Shearer of Cape Classics was in town and my friend Shabnam and I attended a tasting of South African wines (that's the three of us at the event).  Andre is the founder of Cape Classics, the largest and most well known importer of wines from South Africa.  Arguably, Andre and Cape Classics have really put South African wines on the map, so to speak.  Most people are not too familiar with South African wines, or are even aware that wines are produced there.  But, in fact, there is a huge wine growing region there, and it is very diverse, and extremely beautiful.  If you have never been to Cape Town and the surrounding area, it is one of the most picturesque and amazing places in the world.  I have been there three times and I can tell you that anyone who has been there would tell you the same thing.  When you go there and you taste the quality and variety of wines that are produced, it is hard not to believe that there are world class wines coming out of South Africa.  Having been there and fallen in love with Cape Town and the wines, I have been a regular consumer, especially of Kanonkop Kadette.  It has been my everyday go to red wine for years.  I buy a couple of cases every year and have done so for many years now.  I think you would be hard pressed to find a more complex and drinkable red wine at its price point, which is about $12.99, though it comes down to around $10 when you buy it by the case and get the discount at Union Square Wines.  I reckon that South African wines will continue to become more well known, especially since the World Cup is being held there and a lot of attention will be drawn to the region.  At the tasting Andre discussed the wines of South Africa and shared a lot of really great stories with us.  It was a fairly intimate affair, there were three tables of about ten people each, and we were served a flight of seven wines, one white and six reds.  One of the things that Andre continued to highlight, was the great quality to value of South African wines.  I have to say I totally agree, and this holds true at all price points.  Some of the wines from the tasting lean towards the pricey side, especially these days, but I can tell you that they are comparable with wines that cost two and three times as much.  I was a believer before the tasting, and am doubly so now!   Here are the wines that were tasted.

Raats 2006 Chenin Blanc Estate  $14.99
Chenin Blanc is the white grape of South African wine.  There are great Chardonnay's and Sauvignon Blanc's as well, but Chenin really sings there.  This one had a really great citrus nose, with notes of lemon zest and cantaloupe.  It was straw yellow in color, with good acidity and there were additional flavors of vanilla and parmigiano reggiano.  A great refreshing summer wine.  87 Points. 

Kanonkop Estate 2007 Pinotage  $37.99
If you want an introduction to the signature grape of South African reds, Pinotage, this is a great starting point.  Or the Kadette, but that's a blend, and this one is more than just an everyday wine.  This wine is still very young and it will probably age well for 10 years or longer.  It has medium body, good acidity and tannins, and there are flavors of fresh cracked pepper, smoked camp fire, dried Italian herbs, mint and cocoa.  90 Points.

Rudi Schultz 2006 Syrah  $34.99
The other grape that is doing amazing things in South Africa is Syrah, also known as Shiraz.  Syrah can be very different where it is grown well in the world.  Syrah in California, Syrah in the Rhone region of southern France and Shriaz in Australia are the most well known.  In South Africa it has its own voice as well, and an amazing one at that.  This is a wine that everyone should try, and it may be one of the best, if not the best Syrah out of South Africa.  Since 2002 every vintage has been rated 90 points or higher by Wine Spectator.  This one is no exception.  It is a medium bodied Syrah, with a hedonistic nose of chocolate, sweet spicy toasted wood, candied cherries, kirsch, and creme de menthe.  While the nose is huge it is not over powering in the mouth and even tasted a bit closed on the finish.  It may need a bit more time to finish coming together.  It is not overly jammy and does not taste cooked at all, which I find can be a problem with some Syrah's elsewhere.  Wine Spectator rated this one a 93, I would say that we are pretty close in agreement.  92 Points.

Kanonkop Estate 2004 Paul Sauer  $44.99
This is a Bordeaux style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc.  Andre noted that it has a very left bank Bordeaux style.  I was thinking almost the same thing as it reminded me of a possible ringer for the 1994 L'Evangile I wrote about in my Five Decades of Bordeaux posting, though that is a right bank Bordeaux.  L'Evangile, by the way, can typically sell for a couple hundred bucks a bottle, or more, depending on the vintage.   Needless to say, I loved this wine from go.  It has an eclectic mix of flavors with that day after camp fire nose, wet earth, smoked game, chocolate and caramel.  There is great acidity, fine tannins, and a bright sweet red fruit mouth feel.  I bet this one is going to age very well.  Exotic and delicious.  93 Points.

De Toren 2007 Fusion V  $49.99
If the kanonkop was the L'Evangile, then the De Toren was the Le Gay, at least in terms of how those wines paired in the Five Decades of Bordeaux tasting.  The De Toren was a slightly more balanced and restrained version of the Paul Sauer.  There is a nose of marzipan and starchy pasta water.  There is still a smokey dark fruit component and the tannins are balanced and fine.  Not as quirky and forward as the Kanonkop, but equally intriguing.  A pleasure to drink.  91 Points.

Thelema 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon, The Mint  $52.99
Now this is an interesting wine as well.  Similar to the Sauer and the De Toren, but also some other weird tropical stuff going on too.  The nose is brine, mint, and fennel.  But there are also aromas of coconut and banana, piña colada, and vanilla ice cream.  It's medium bodied and the acidity is there as well.  The dark smokey thing is there and the mouth feel is silky.  Pairs well with the previous two wines.  Nice (Borat voice).  92 Points.

Rustenberg 2005 Peter Barlow  $59.99
The nose on the Rustenberg was a bit more closed than the previous wines.  But there are some interesting things in there never the less.  There is a wine barrel note, also ketchup and BBQ sauce.  There is cherry fruit and a shell fish component.  The wine is medium bodied and the acidity is also nice.  Probably will show better with a bit of age.  90 Points.

Well, that wraps up this posting.  As you may have noted, a smokey quality is a signature flavor to many South African red wines.  I personally love it, but it may not be for everyone.  All the wines were great, some may be a bit more pricey, and even though I think the Paul Sauer, De Toren, and Thelema were the top scores, the Schultz Syrah represents great value to quality.  And the Wine Spectator ratings seem to stand behind this as well.  But hey, that still might be too much to spend.  So even though we did not taste it, try the Kanonkop Kadette as an intro to South African wines, at that price point I don't think anyone could have any regrets. 

Magnum Opus - Suckling Pig Roast Dinner

So once again I had the pleasure of attending another great wine dinner thrown by master bespoke tailor Duncan Quinn and Justin Christoph of the Manhattan Wine Company.  We dined at The Breslin at the Ace Hotel here in Manhattan.  The center piece of the evening was an entire roast suckling pig served to us at the chef's table.  It was a bit Lord of the Flies, but it was amazing.  I still can't believe I ate a pig ear!  The side dishes were equally amazing, the Caesar salad was one of the best I have had and the potatoes cooked with duck fat were legendary.  Spinach and roasted fennel were nice too to get some green in there.  While the pig was the center of the table, it was not the star of the evening.  The real stars were the wines.  It was an eclectic mix of wines, so I was not sure what to expect, but I went in with an open mind.  All the bottles were magnums, or double bottles, hence the name of the dinner.  Justin said he chose wines that could stand up to a roast pig, and they certainly did, and went beyond that as well.  Usually wine dinners have highs and lows, but these wines were all amazing.  And if it looks like we were having a lot of fun, we were!  Here is a recap of the magnums that were served. 

Joguet-Chinon Les Varennes 1999

Made from the Cabernet Franc grape, this Chinon from Charles Joguet was still very youthful for a wine that many people don't typically think can age.  There is a distinctive bright berry, cranberry nose.  There are also smoke, wet earth, pepper, sour cherry, liquorish, caramel, and herbal notes.  Tannins are very light, and finish is still a bit closed.  Well done.  90 Points.

Château Mouton Rothschild 1976
The Mouton was brick and sanguine in color.  There is a dark smokey oak nose to the wine that is very hedonistic.  There are tones of really dark black cherry fruit and cassis on the nose and palate.  It has a pretty big mouth feel, and although the finish lingers it seems a tad flat compared to the intense aromatics.  I have to say I would have thought this wine would have been over the hill because the 1970's were not the most memorable decade for Bordeaux.  But it was not at all over the hill, and was drinking wonderfully.  Justin reminded me that the larger the wine bottle the more slowly the wine will age due to the subtle exchange of air from cork to wine, hence more wine equals longer aging.  Also, the wine came from a great old cellar in Switzerland, so it was probably kept at a slightly lower temperature than most cellars, thus a more youthful tasting wine.  Definitely the surprise of the evening.  92 Points.

Château Musar 1978

This blend of Cabernet, Syrah, and Cinsault hails from Château Musar in Lebanon.  Yes Lebanon.  In the Middle East.  And it was a wine out of left field for me, because who would think of wine coming from Lebanon.  But you know what, this was the wine of the night in my book, and many others as well.  Such as my friend Danielle who is pictured with yours truly at the dinner.  Anyway, this wine is bright, bright sweet fruit.  There is a mix of sweet smokey and mild earthy flavors.  There are also hints of Indian spices, dried fruits, Amarone, mesquite barbecue sauce and rich caramel.  An absolutely delicious and unexpected wine which leaves you wanting more.  95 Points.

Verset Cornas 1990

Danielle reckoned this would be the wine of the evening, and going in I probably would have agreed.  Danielle and I came out with a slight edge for the Musar, but Justin thought it was the Cornas.  That is the beauty of wine, it comes down to individual taste.  That said, this was a fabulous wine that continued the trend of eclectic flavors and aromas of the earlier wines.  It was dark garnet in color, and smelled of dark red fruit, roasted game, earth, medicinal herbs, smoked paprika, olives, and cornichons.  The wine really just kept getting more complex in the glass, developing additional nuances.  Cornas is located in the Rhone region of southern France, and Verset was one of the most traditional in style.  From what was discussed at the dinner and what I can find out, Verset is no longer really being produced.  Its maker Noel Verset is in his 90's and has sold off the vineyards.  This was truly a blessing to be able to try a wine that will probably be impossible to ever try again.  92 Points.

Sean Thackrey, Orion 1989

The last red that we tasted was at first thought to be off, but in fact, it was not.  It opened up into an incredibly full bodied wine, which I reckon still has a long life ahead.  The wine is very dense and dark, with aromas of beef bullion, black cherries, sultana raisins, dark chocolate, mocha, and sweet toasted oak.  There is still a lot of structure to this wine, it's big, but it works.  The finish keeps going.  A real pleasure to drink, and a very close runner up to the Musar!  Sean Thackrey is a very colorful winemaker, and I could not find a website for him or his wines, but they seem to be widely available.  93-94 Points.

Riesling Gold Kap S.A. Piüm 1997

The final wine of evening was a white wine, a semi sweet Riesling, which was served with dessert.  There was chocolate torte cake, but Justin and I paired it with the hazelnut gelato.  What a great combo!  The Riesling was somewhere in between sweet and dry and tasted of tart apricot and nectarine.  There were also hints of citrus, roasted nuts, flint, lychee and cherry flavored Flintstones vitamins.  A very interesting wine and look at the length of that bottle.  90 Points.

Taste California Terroir: Winemaker Dinner with Edmunds St. John!

There is a great and affordable wine dinner next week in conjunction with Chamber's Street Wines.  You can click on the description below to find out more on their website.  Please let me know if anyone is interested and we can maybe try and organize a few people to go, but please remember it will probably sell out quickly as it is a pretty good deal.  Cheers, Greg

"Steve Edmunds and Cornelia St. John started Edmunds St. John in 1985 with the intention of creating top-quality, old-world style wines from California that would speak of a sense of place. If there are any wines that make a case for California terrior it’s these defined by site specificity and minimal intervention, their dynamic fruit is balanced by a tension and restraint rarely achieved in the New World. There emphasis at Edmunds St John has always been on Rhone-style wines made primarily from Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Viognier, all of which are very small production. We are thrilled to offer the opportunity to enjoy these wines with food over several courses at Belcourt, a delightful Parisian-style brasserie.  Join us Thursday, May 13th at 7:30 with Steve Edmunds at Belcourt for four courses and at least eight wines! The price is $75 per person including tax and gratuity. 35 seats available - please call or email us to reserve your spot."

Wines my friends brought to the weekend BBQ!

Fate and good fortune.  Thanks to my friends for bringing such great and eclectic wines to our BBQ this past weekend.  Here are a few of the highlights.

Diemersfontein Pinotage 2008  $19.99

I think the label accurately sums up this wine.  It smells like a box of chocolates.  Dark and milk chocolate, mixed with dark candied cherries and smoked sea salt.  Yum!  92 Points.

Pinotage is the signature grape variety of South African reds.  It is a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsaut, know in South Africa as Hermitage, hence the name Pinotage.

I think this is a wine worth searching out, it is very distinctive.  And the price seems pretty reasonable given its quality and unique flavors.  I don't think it is widely distributed in the U.S., but I did happen to find it at KL Wine Merchants.  Might need to order a couple of these.

Naudin Tiercin 2004 Savigny-Les-Beaunes  $22.99

This is an easy going Burgundy.  Red wines from Burgundy are made from the Pinot Noir grape.  It is medium garnet in color with a slight rust color at the edges.  There is a nose of sour cherries and there are rhubarb and fennel flavors as well.  Light tannins and crisp acidity also help define the wine.  I prefer a bit more earthiness in Pinot Noir, but this is still a wine that would pair well with lighter dishes that might require some decent acidity.  86 Points.

Burgundy wines are where the term "terroir" originated.  It is also referred to as "climat" in Burgundy.  The idea of terroir, which is a hot topic in the wine world these days, can apply to any distinct wine growing micro climate.  One of the best examples of how the concept of terroir has impacted the wine world over the past 10-15 years is the growth of single vineyard bottling here in the United States and throughout the world.

Evans and Tate, Margaret River 2004 Semillon

I am not sure this wine is available in the States.  My friend brought it back from a recent trip to Australia.  She swears by this wine and it was great with the BBQ.  The wine was straw yellow in color and there were great citrus elements on the nose.  Flavors of grapefruit, lime, pineapple and pear are mixed with flavors of ginger ale and aged cheese.  Nice round mouth feel and decent tart acidity are also present.  88 Points.

The Semillon grape is commonly used as one of the blending grapes in dry white wine in France's Bordeaux region.  But it is used more famously in the Sauternes region of France to make the ubiquitous sweet Sauternes wine.  Chateau Yquem being the most renowned, and expensive!

Union Square Wines, South African Wine Safari

This is a tasting that I am going to attend this coming Thursday.  It is of South African wines, which are not widely available or appreciated in the U.S., but I can tell you, having visited Cape Town, South Africa three times, that it is an up and coming and very exciting wine region.  And one that represents great quality to value.  The tasting is $20, but Union Square Wines gives you a $10 voucher towards a wine purchase so basically it costs $10.  They are pouring some more limited edition wines, and they are providing snacks and probably some schwag as well.  Further info is available below, but you can click this link to sign up:  Union Square Wines South African Wine Tasting.  Hope to see some of you there! 

Event Date: Thursday, May 06, 7:00pm - 8:30pm Description of tasting: USQ is pleased to welcome Cape Classics founder Andre Shearer to the Salon for our most anticipated South African event of the year. With the World Cup looming and all eyes on South Africa, attendees will get a first hand taste of the pandemonium to come with the man who almost single-handedly introduced fine South African wines to the United States. Join us for an evening with Andre Shearer and Team USQ as we uncork nearly one dozen luxury offerings from the Cape featuring knockout cuvées from De Toren, Klein Constantia, Kanonkop, Rustenberg and more. Reservations are required for this fun and informative South African wine event. Reservations cost a meager $20 and include a $10 wine voucher valid towards purchases the night of the event. At this time reservations are limited to just two per customer please.