Summer Vacation

Each year we plan a summer vacation with the kids and another family. We have been practicing this tradition for years and generally end up at a northern Minnesota or Wisconsin resort. This year, as the planning began, we were kicking around the usual resorts or perhaps the Black Hills when I thought, there is a perfect place to finally bring the kids where we can all kick back, relax, and enjoy a couple days from the hectic world we all live. Napa Valley is not the first place most think to bring children, and in all my visits I have not seen many, but there is no rule against it. It also seemed time for my teen-aged daughters to learn a bit more about how my wife and I make our living.

With little notice, I found myself planning a trip for four adults and four children to Napa on the Fourth of July weekend. While this task would generally be very difficult, some very good and long-standing business partners stepped forward to accommodate.  It is fitting that the first winery my kids toured and stayed with was Franciscan as this was the first place my wife and I visited. We have stayed with Franciscan so many times over the years we affectionately refer to their guesthouse as our Summer Home. Our next stop was Trinchero. With the best hospitality in the valley, it is a perfect place to bring the kids. The breakfast served by the folks at Sutter Home is beyond compare and the kids loved it!

Four teen-aged kids touring the valley and learning about viticulture while their parents tasted wine was a recipe for fantastic memories. The kids performed beyond our expectations and learned valuable lessons about wine making that many professionals I deal with have not yet experienced. It was a great trip for my family and our friends. I look forward to the day I can bring the group again when our kids are over twenty-one and we can share the wine as well as the ambiance.

Fear not the color pink!

We had a little get together the past holiday weekend and were blessed with good friends, good weather, and great food and drink. While we always offer "all three food groups" at our shindigs (liquor, beer and wine) the wine has become more of the focus over the years with our maturing group of friends leaning toward the grape. One particular wine caught my, or rather a few of my guests, attention. Not necessarily in a good way, at first. I had the reds in the house and cold buckets of sauvignon blanc, chardonnay and rose outside on the picnic table. The roses are where this post is leading. While being polite a couple guests seemed a bit surprised to find pink wine at my house. Leaving me to explain that you need not fear all that is pink. It is not necessarily white zinfandel and can be surprisingly dry and complex. While rose has been around longer than anyone reading this, it has been overshadowed in the past twenty years by sweet and simple white zinfandel. Since they generally look the same, many people assume the taste is similar. Of course this is not the case, and people often seem almost shocked when I explain that a rose can be made from any red grape. People really don't believe me when I tell them you can make a pink or even clear white cabernet. It really helps prove the point having a cabernet grape in hand and squeezing the very clear juice from the berry. Without going into too much detail, wine color comes from the time the juice spends soaking in the grape skins. Leave a barrel of cabernet juice in contact for an extended period and it turns dark red. Shorten that period and make it pink. Enter rose!

 The wines I was serving that day are both available and quite popular at Glen Lake Wine and Spirits. The first rose was Terra d'Oro. This delicious wine is made from 94% nebbiolo, a grape commonly found in Italy's Piedmont region. But also found in small quantities in Amador County, California. The remaining 6% is made from syrah. It has flavors of orange, grapefruit and peach. With an alcohol content of 12.5%, it doesn't burn through light fare foods. This pairs well with a great summer salad on a hot day or it can cool your palate when served with a spicy dish.

Our second pink offering of the day was Menage a Trois. This is a great "party wine" for several reasons I won't delve into. The couple I will touch on are the very affordable price to quality ratio and the delicious fruity delight this wine offers. If you concentrate on the wine, you can pick out most of the sweeter red fruits. Especially raspberry and strawberry. The wine is a combination of three grapes (hence the name, right?). Merlot, syrah, and gewurtztraminer make this wine a definite must try next time you are taking in the sun on your deck. Yes, I did say gewurtztraminer, weird but also intriguing.

Broken record........

I have been on a major cabernet franc kick for the past few months, I think it is almost more the fact that wineries tell me I can't have it as much as I just love the wine. As said in past blogs this varietal is typically grown as a blending grape and seldom bottled on it own. This is ashame, it is truly a delight on it's own and needs little help from it's grape brethren.  Occasionally people do bottle this grape and I am usually the first in line to drink this unique flavorful wine.

 Tonight I have the treat of 2005 Steltzner cabernet franc. It is good! 14.6% alcohol (though you certainly can not taste it), 24 months in French oak (that you can taste) 99% cabernet franc and 1% merlot (just because it needed that tiny little extra).  They only produced 785 cases, so there probably is not much, if any, left in the market. It has the typical blueberry and vanilla flavor of this variety with little tannin. Silky, smooth, pleasant, easy to drink, wish there was more in the bottle wine. 

We do have a little more left for sale at Glen Lake Wine and Spirits but you best hurry for it will not last!

The best things in life aren't free......

A couple colleagues of mine recently returned from the Napa Valley bearing gifts. It is very easy to find a gift for me from the Napa Valley, since some of my favorite things in the world come from that part of the world. Namely Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. The first is widely distributed and easy to get, the latter is generally made in very small lots and is not distributed outside the wineries for the most part. 

 The two bottles of Cabernet Franc hauled across the country wrapped in clothing and carefully checked in luggage were irresistible to me. Wine is a lot more difficult to get than it was pre 9/11, as anyone who has wrapped an expensive bottle inside a pair of jeans and hoped for the best can attest. The wine could have/should have been placed in my cellar for a year or two, but life is short and fine Cabernet Franc is too tempting to let sit. The two bottles lasted two nights and now I have nothing left but the delicious memories.

My first bottle was 2006 Darioush Cabernet Franc. I have not visited this winery, located on the southern end of the Silverado Trail, but have passed it many times and admired its architectural beauty. The wine showed spicy dark fruits, smooth and delicious. Specifically blueberry and black cherry, with some of the customary plum and tobacco expected with this variety. The 2006 is 100% Cabernet Franc aged 22 months in French oak. 940 cases where produced. Get some if you can and bring it to me if you wish to give a great gift.

 The second bottle was 2006 Paradigm Cabernet Franc. This is a wine I could drink every day and not get bored. Medium bodied, with delightful fruit. Soft mouthfeel, light tannins, blueberries and plum. This is the epitome of a simply complex yet easy going, approachable, delightful wine. It would go with many cuisines but I would probably choose to drink on its own as there were only 158 cases made and I would simply like to savor its pleasures without interruption!

 

 

 

Time tested

While perusing my cellar oldies the other night I decided the time had come to drink the last of the 1999 Caymus Cabernet. When I am down to my last two bottles it is always hard to finish off the end of a vintage, especially a particular vineyard or vintage favorite. But I do have my ten-year California rule and am suspect that any 1999s will still be drinkable, at least not as drinkable as they would have been a couple years ago.

The 1999 looked good, the label was clean and wine was high on the shoulders. Without seeing the vintage date there would be no way of distinguishing the bottle from a 2007. Of course those are relatively easy tests compared to what came next... The cork came out with a very solid closure that showed no leakage over the past ten years, again no different than pulling a 2007.  The nose from the bottle was fine, therefore the wine was not corked or oxygenated. So far so good! The pour into my Reidel did not have the vibrant ruby colour one expects from a young California Cabernet; rather it showed a brown and rusty colour that would be typical of an aged Bordeaux.

I put the color scare out of my mind and gave the wine a first sip. Delicious! This highly rated bottle initially (back in the early 2000s) showed cigar box, cedar, tobacco, vanilla, mint, and nice bright fruit. My aged bottle still had fruit and vanilla as well as the cedar and tobacco. The tannins and oak have faded since my last taste and I certainly enjoyed the wine more a couple years ago but this is one of the more ageable California Cabernets I have experienced. If I could not see the colour in the glass I would have guessed the wine at five years old, not eleven. Great stuff, I do not know when I will dare to pop the last bottle.

 

Giddy Up!

Each year during the Holiday season I am fortunate enough to receive gifts from people in the wine business. You can probably guess what people in the wine business give to people who own wine stores. Yep wine. I am very easy to shop for because even though I work among thousands of bottles of wine, on a daily basis, I still get excited every time someone gives me a bottle to try. Whether it is a gift or another sales sample I have yet to get tired of trying new wines. While sampling a cabernet from this years bounty I believe I came up with a new wine description (at least in my limited wine vocabulary) Cowboy Wine.

The "Old West" wine in question is: J. Lohr 2006 Hilltop Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon. J. Lohr's website describes this particular vintage as toasty vanilla oak with black cherry and current. The grapes picked from their Paso Robles vineyard just as they developed a doughy berry pie flavor. The description is mouth watering and my personal review was very similar to the wineries.

My words to my wife as I took my third sip of this delicious cabernet were, "Lots of black cherry and coffee. Big tannins, honey do you know what this wine is? This is cowboy wine!" She looked at me and rather than mocking my silly new wine term agreed instantly. "Yes this is a cowboy cabernet," she replied, "you hit it right on the head." As much as we enjoyed the glass we stopped at one and saved the second half of the bottle for the next evening. On night two the wine settled a bit, still showing its cherry flavors but in a more elegant fashion. The coffee had faded and tannins calmed, it lost its cowboyness and tasted like a different more laid back cabernet. Fresh or decanted this wine is delicious, when trying a bottle I suggest giving it some time to taste the evolution from old west to big city.

 

"Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrive!"

 

Yes it's that time of year. The new Beaujolais is coming to town which means it is the 3rd Thursday in November and time for us Americans to celebrate Thanksgiving! This wine is particularly suited for Thanksgiving due to the fact that it pairs quite well with turkey. Although the consumer will get a better wine usually at a better price by purchasing a standard Beaujolais, most cannot resist the celebratory hype of the Nouveau. 

Beaujolais is wine that comes from Burgundy France. Made from the Gamay grape it is the far more affordable cousin to the famous Pinot Noir grape that comes from Burgundy often selling for hundreds and even thousands of dollars per bottle.  Nouveau is often referred to as the "cash flow" wine of Burgundy as it is only about six weeks old by the time it hits your glass. It never sees any oak aging, is basically tannin free really inexpensive wine to produce. I believe that the largest cost in drinking a bottle in Minnesota is the shipping. With all that said we still look forward to this time each year as a beginning to our holiday season. Drinking Nouveau has been compared to eating cookie dough, and who hasn't rejoiced in a bit of cookie dough? Many may argue that the dough is more fun than the cookie! Enter Nouveau Beaujolais.

Stop in at Glen Lake Wine and Spirits this Thursday afternoon as the shipments begin to arrive.  Commence another holiday season with a fun glass of wine that is intended for simplicity and celebration.

Cabernet, Chardonnay..............

 

Yes there are other varietals to sample and for me to write about. Although I am guilty of sticking to the above, in the month of November I am atoning and focusing on non-traditional wines (at least in my world).  We actually have "winery of the month" that does not include a Cabernet or Chardonnay. We will also be tasting these strange non-Cabernet wines all month at Glen Lake Wine and Spirits.

November is focused on Cline Cellars of Sonoma California. I have visited this winery and had a wonderful time in their laid back Sonoma atmosphere. They do not make $100 or even $50 wine, which is almost unheard of from that part of the world. They focus on fine wine at a good value and deliver.

Stop in and try a bottle of Cline:

Zinfandel - Their signature wine

Viognier - For those of you looking for a change from Chardonnay

Pinot Gris - (AKA Pinot Grigio)

Cashmere - A blend of Syrah, Grenache, and Mouvedre

Ancient Vine Zin - Clines premium Zin. One of the best you will find under $20.

 

 

 

So many wineries, so little time.

 

In my continued effort to visit every winery in the Napa Valley I was in wine country last week for a few days. This trip did take a rather large detour to Amador County. This is because I had never visited the area and I received the most generous offer from Terra d' Oro Winery to put my group up for a couple nights. Amador was not even on my radar for a visit simply because I did not think there was much out there to see. I was wrong! It is a beautiful country side without the crowds and congestion of Napa and Sonoma. While Terra d' Oro does offer all the major varietals in their line up, it is definitely Zinfandel country. The majority of their vineyards are planted to Zinfandel, the grape that thrives best in that part of the state and has seen success since the gold rush.

We did taste through all the wines they offer and while we enjoyed everything, there was one variety that beat out the big Amador Zins: Barbera! All four of us seemed most impressed with the Barbera. Possibly because we get to try all the others frequently and have not had a great deal of opportunity to taste this most refreshing wine. The wine-maker/tour-guide who spent the day showing his facilities, vineyards, and wines was most generous to send us up to our house for the weekend with more wine than we could possibly finish. I did notice when packing for our next leg that the Barbera was indeed all gone. Look for Terra d' Oro Barbera and Montevina Barbera (secondary label) next time you visit Glen Lake Wine and Spirits.

 The final day and night of the trip found us back in Napa Valley. After a couple snow falls and some really dismal weather in Minneapolis the past couple weeks, arriving in this lush valley was a sight to behold. Green trees, flowers, and rows of vineyards that still had grapes hanging. Ah! I'll be remembering the images while shoveling snow for the next six months.

Our first stop was Grgich Hills. Where we actually saw Mike Grgich hanging around the front of his winery signing bottles and chatting with his customers. Next we headed up Howell Mountain to visit O'Shaughnessy. This hard to find, hidden up a mountain winery was breathtaking. It is a small operation that only produces Cabernet and does it well. They spared no expense building the winery and cave that includes a spectacular tasting room. Our final stop of the day was the new Trinchero facility in the heart of the valley. This winery was recently completed and built as a tribute to the Trichero family patriarchs. A very inviting and comfortable facility that again spared no expense. I recommend stopping at Trinchero for a tasting next time you visit Napa. Make sure to try the Cabernet Franc; it is one of my favorites.

 Heading back to the Sacramento airport we found ourselves thirty minutes ahead of schedule and approaching Chandon. A sip of bubbles seemed an appropriate way to finish off this most relaxing and enjoyable trip. When we found our way to the tasting room it was absolutely packed with visitors. We thought our luck had run out, but I decided to give it a shot and found a most polite and helpful staff member. After explaining that I do sell their wine but did not make an appointment for a visit, he took us to a private tasting table and offered us the finest sparkling wines they produce. Well done Chandon!

Apostrophe S or S Apostrophe

I was enjoying a glass of 2005 Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Artemis Cabernet tonight and became inspired to tell the tales of the Stag's Leaps' as I've heard them from the two neighboring wineries.  I've been a guest at both wineries and am not going to take sides.  I enjoy them equally and cannot wait for my next invite to either. That said I give you the stories as I have heard from both fine establishments.

 

Stag's Leap Wine Cellars:

200-acre vineyard located in the heart of the Stag's Leap District of the Napa Valley.

Winner of the 1976 Paris tasting that put Napa Valley "on the map" as the finest wine producing area in the world (for Cabernet and Chardonnay.)

Super cool wine cave that includes the only Foucault Pendulum in the Napa Valley and I believe only one of two in North America.

Recently aquired by Chateau Ste. Michelle Estates. A truly solid winery holding company.

 

Stags' Leap Winery:

 240-acre vineyard located in the heart of Napa Valley's Stag's Leap District.

Non-stop vineyard operations since 1880.

Country Resort and Spa (for the wealthy of San Francisco) in the early to mid 20th century.

Historic Stone manor house built in 1892.

Owned by Beringer Blass.

 

The two vineyards battled for years over the right to the name Stags Leap.  In 1986 the California Supreme Court ruled that Stag's Leap was an area not a vineyard.  And ordered "Cellars" to place the apostrophe before their s and "Winery" to place the apostrophe after their s.  Neither winery objected to the ruling, the lawyers made large sums of money.

As to the name Stag's Leap, I have heard two different versions to the story.  I can't remember which winery told which story and since I have been to both twice, they may have told different versions each time.  Anyway, there is a giant cliff at the top of the mountain in Stag's Leap.  Both stories tell of a Native American hunting a great stag to the end of the cliff.  In one the proud animal plunged to his death rather than being taken by the hunter.  In the other version the stag makes it safely to the other side of the cliff.   I have looked at that cliff and distance many times and find the first version of the story more plausible.

Colorado?

 

Some friends recently returned from a trip to Colorado. As their trusty dog sitters they often bring us a bottle of local wine from their travels. I know there are wineries in all fifty States, but am always curious and anxious to try wines from non-traditional wine growing climates.

 Book Cliff Vineyards 2006 Reserve Cabernet Franc is... interesting! Cabernet Franc from Colorado?? While this is a preferred grape on my list, I really did not ever think it could be cultivated in Colorado. Coming from a small 33 acre vineyard, Book Cliff is aged in 100% new French oak for 18 months; not bad. They are definitely making a heavy investment in their grapes. French oak barrels do not come cheap. To use 100% new is putting Book Cliff on a cost basis with the big boys of expensive wine country around the world.

 The wine was pleasant, although not typical of the domestic and European Cab Francs I am accustom. The alcohol is right in line at 14.3%, though it is certainly not a "hot" wine. It has smooth tannins and bright fruit flavors as opposed to the darker fruit typical of this variety. Rather than the usual tobacco, raspberry, and cassis, it has more of a light and lively violet flavor. A fun cab franc!

 Next time you pass through Colorado, grab a bottle. It's worth a try.

Twice with different results

 

In the past couple weeks I have had opportunity to try 1997 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet on two occasions.  One bottle had been stored in my dark cool basement for the past eight years. The other spent six years in that climate and the past two on the shelves at Glen Lake Wine and Spirits. I decided to pull and drink the store bottle with a wine-drinking buddy who loves to stop by the store to try and discuss wines. The second bottle I tried with a good customer, who also makes wine, whom I look to for an opinion whenever we are trying wine in the store. I initially decided to pull the wine based on my ten year California rule: I believe that most California Cabernets are best consumed within ten years. The 1997's, which I had in good supply, were dwindling and it is time to finish them. 

The 1997 Alexander Valley Silver Oak is comprised of 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. According to the folks at Silver Oak the wine should drink until 2022 with proper cellaring. I still have a couple bottles left and will certainly wait to see what happens thirteen years from now. In the mean time, I'm glad I tried a couple in 2009. 

 The first bottle coming from the basement cellar was old and a bit tired in my opinion. The other gentlemen tasting with me appreciated it much more than I and thought it was quite decent considering its age. Another reason I believe in drinking California Cabernets in ten years or less is: Why would you want to make excuses for wine that was once great? i.e. "it's still holding up well." This particular wine was absolutely delicious five years ago; perhaps we should have drunk it all up in its prime. The second bottle coming from store display was much better, ironic considering both came from the same case and the one stored improperly for the past couple years fared much better.  The store bottle still had fruit flavors and showed cassis, cocoa and coffee. It still had life, although I contend it still would have been better a couple years earlier. Perhaps that is why we save wine, because no one really knows what will happen to the bottle over time. I hope I'm still doing this in 2022 and I'll let you know how the 1997 is holding up.

 

 Hidden Gem

 

Conn Creek is a regular wine at my table, but a sleeper to the general public. This cabernet sauvignon is a Napa cabernet bargain that is not widely distributed or credited for the value it offers.

 Glen Lake Wine and Spirits offers this wine at $19.99, while it is commonly found from $24.99 to $29.99. At any of these prices it is a good value for this quality of cabernet. Tonight I am sampling the 2005. It is equal to the 2004, which I also found delicious. The wine is 82% cabernet sauvignon, 7% cabernet franc, 5% merlot, 4% malbec, and 2% petit verdot. All five Bordeaux varieties! The wine offers a mellow easy to drink cabernet, with hints of plum, coffee, mocha chocolate, and a cherry finish.

Highly recommended. Give it a try with your next flourless chocolate cake.

 

 

 

Sun and Sauvignon Blanc

 

We spent the better part of the week traveling around California wine country in 100 degree weather. While some may think that sounds like a sweaty trip through the vineyards it was actually quite enjoyable. The chardonnays and sauvignon blanc's never tasted better than under the blistering California summer sun, the cabernets, merlots and pinot were simply taken inside the tasting rooms or caves. I have visited wine country during all the seasons and can't decide on a favorite, but I do have to say it sure feels good in the summer. As they say "it's a dry heat."

This trip found us visiting with some old friends as well as making some new friends in this wonderful business. Our relaxing trip through wine country found us at:

1. Guenoc

2. Schramsberg

3. Chalk Hill

4. Simi

5. Hess

6. Turnbull

7. Franciscan

8. Duckhorn

9. Paraduxx

10. Stags Leap

A great trip indeed and to those who have asked, they were all my favorite.

Merryvale Starmont new to Glen Lake Wine and Spirits

 

Three new Merryvale wines arrived in Glen Lake and are on special through the Summer.

1. Merryvale Starmont 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Valley. Aged 18 months in French oak, this wine offers flavors of cassis, raspberry, and vanilla. A delicious wine on its own, or for steak night on the grill. The 2005 cabernet is made up of 79% cabernet sauvignon, 14% merlot, 4% syrah, 2% petite verdot, 1% cabernet franc.

 

2. Merryvale Starmont 2008 Sauvignon Blanc - Napa Valley. A perfect summer picnic wine, pared with salad or fish or just on its own on a hot day. Comprised of 96% sauvignon blanc and 4% semillon, the wine shows lemon, lime and passion-fruit. It does offer backbone, aged in 70% French oak with alcohol at 13.5%.

 

3. Merryvale Starmont 2007 Chardonnay - Napa Valley. A nice middle of the road Napa chardonnay, 50% oak and 50% stainless.  The wine offers a full bodied chardonnay that is not overly oaked. The pear and apple fruit flavor come alive with a finish of toast and vanilla. 

 

Stock up on all three Merryvale Starmont selections while on sale at Glen Lake Wine and Spirits this Summer. Remember Summer is short, very short, get to that picnic and grill before the snow flies.