The Wall Came to Livonia

Posted on August 18, 2019 by thewineraconteur

Even though Vietnam started affecting the United States in 1955, it wasn’t until years later that it really took its toll.   I remember when they brought back the lottery for the draft and it was my birthday that was the first date pulled, except that is was two years too early.  I also remember how we all had to go to the Selective Service Administration and fill out the paperwork, so that on our eighteenth birthday we would be ready, if called.  I remember that I started college prior to my age of majority and I was assigned a Classification of 1H, for holding, and as long as I kept my grades up, the odds were that I would maintain that classification.  I know that card is somewhere, but I think that I should no longer be worrying about being called now.

I am sure that some people see the world “wall” and in today’s heightened environment of political tension, the wall I am referring to is the travelling version of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C.  I read that this version has motorcyclists that accompany the display from location to location.  The whole park had a solemn air to it, and there was a tacit aura of patriotism as one looked at the layout of the area.  There were displays, a labyrinth for prayers and solitude and plenty of volunteers.  There were plenty of Veterans present helping out, and just like at the original wall, there are people that will make a tracing of a family member or friend that was lost during the war.  I think I heard that they had volunteers to read each and every name on the wall, and the memorial would be open for three days, around the clock, so that all schedules of people could be accommodated.  It was strange to see, but I guess nowadays, signs discussing the etiquette of proper mourning behavior, and while we were there, there were no protests, and the grounds were beautiful, not the typical messes left by crowds of people.  My Bride and I had a nice leisurely five or six mile walk to see the Wall and we were just in awe of the solemnity that we were a part of. 

As we were walking home, my Bride had informed me, that she had not pulled anything out from the freezer, so nothing would be ready for cooking and she asked if we should go out.  I suggested that we have something easy and American for dinner, so we had Kosher hot dogs and pork and beans, usually food that we have ready for the odd time that we have fussy children at the house, as they always seem eager to have that, no matter what tempting dish we may be serving.  To top off the dinner, I grabbed a bottle of bubbly from the refrigerator.  The sparkling wine was one of our favorites from Michigan, M.Lawrence Sandpiper NV. L. Mawby Vineyards is a serious winemaker, and one of the wineries that my Bride would never forgive me, if we didn’t go there on the trip to Suttons Bay. This winery only makes sparkling wine and notice that I did not say Champagne or even American Champagne, since there is almost a universal trade agreement that only allows Champagne from the Champagne district in France to be called it, though there are a few wineries that are “grandfathered” in that can still label their wine as “American Champagne.” Even though the winemaker is very serious, the winery is a fun place, and we had just visited them again during our last trip up north. They produce quite a bit of bubbly and the winery has two labels to differentiate the winemaking process that they use. The M. Lawrence line is division is made using the bulk process, also referred to a “cuvee close” or the “Charmat Process.”. Sandpiper is a Semi-Dry wine that is a proprietary blend and that is all I was told. These wines are made in small batches and fermented in the “cuvee close method” as indicated on the label. I prefer a little more sweetness myself in this type of wine, as I am always afraid that extra dry can have little nuance. I am happy to say that I could taste some fruit which made it more appealing.  All I can say is if you are a Veteran, “thank you for your service.”

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A Whirlwind Visit

Posted on August 16, 2019 by thewineraconteur

When I was growing up, every family basically lived near each other.  My Grandmother moved to Detroit, after my Grandfather passed away and her three children all lived within a block of each other, and even when my Grandfather was alive, they lived the next city over, yes, technically it was in another country, but back then Ontario kind of felt like the unofficial fifty-first state of the United States of America.  When my Grandparents got married, they lived in one Armenian ‘ghetto” to another and even in Detroit, our neighborhood was kind of an Armenian “ghetto” as well, just more of the American “Melting Pot” of immigrants that came here to become Americans.  I think the old people were embarrassed by their accents, but they all tried to be Americans and speak English.  They may have been impoverished from circumstances beyond their control, but they all strove to correct that.  They wanted the American Dream.  For the most part, it was my generation that started moving away from home, most of my family, including cousins never left the state, let alone Southeast Michigan where only Windsor was south of the border.

Two of our children are in another state, another time zone and sometimes it feels like another world.  I was never a telephone talker, so to this day, it is hard for me.  In person, it is a different story.  Our son came in town to attend the funeral of one of his friends that he grew up with, and he was going to share a hotel room with one of his cousins that was also flying in for the funeral on the red eye, and we didn’t see the cousin, but we did see our son.  We picked him up at his hotel and we took him to Mint 29, where we had taken his sister before, and so that he could see how dramatically the city had changed since even the last time he was here.  It is quite unique for Dearborn, which in the old days was all charming steak and seafood restaurants, and has now morphed into mostly Halal influenced eateries, and Mint 29 is a fusion style bistro that is over-run with Grizzly-Adams bearded millennials and even though our son is too old to be a millennial, he looked the part.  Only my Bride and I looked out of place, in this former bank building, which was Dearborn Music for as long as I can remember.  We had salmon, tuna, scallops, and beef tenderloin tips.  The conversation was the important part, but we did eat very well.  When I think back when the kids were younger, Kiernan’s Steak House with their Beef Wellington was kiddy-corner from where we were, and a couple doors down was The Topper with the greatest Braised Short Ribs around and both places made their reputation during the Three Martini lunch era and wonderful long dinners. 

Our son was being a teetotaler at the moment, but I knew that he was just saving himself for the evening and the next day, so he was having a cola.  My Bride and I were feeling festive on the occasion and we had a bottle of Joseph Verdier Tresors de Loire Cremant de Loire Brut Rosé NV.  Cremant de Loire is the appellation for the region of sparkling wines encompassing Anjou, Saumur and Touraine. The heart of the Loire Valley.  In 1975 the appellations were issued for Cremant de Loire and Cremant de Bourgogne and followed by Cremant d’Alsace.  While one thinks of Sauvignon Blanc for the Loire, it is a noticeable omission for the Cremant wines, the star of the sparkling wine is Chenin Blanc and then they also rely on Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, Pineau d’Aunis, Grolleau Noir and even Cabernet Sauvignon.  Typically, the Cremant de Loire spend about nine months in the bottle during the second fermentation, and the Rosé style only accounts for about ten percent of the production.  Even though this wine is labeled Brut, I have always heard that the French make the wine a tad sweet, because they believe the American like to see the word Brut, but like a touch of sweet; now maybe it is that I am mellowing, but I do find the floral nose, and a touch of honey in the finish works extremely well for me, and I think my Bride enjoyed equally as well.  One night with our son was definitely better than no night with our son.

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Louis XIII

Posted on August 14, 2019 by thewineraconteur

I am not going to speak of cabbages and kings, but of a wonderful drink that I once enjoyed during my halcyon days of college.  I was working almost full time and carrying eighteen credits a semester, so my days were quite packed.  At work, I had the chance to meet many beer, wine and liquor distributors and I used to hear with very hushed and reverent tones of Louis XIII and this was from a group of individuals that were very boisterous normally.  I remember one of my drinking mentors years ago telling me that “all cognac is brandy, but not all brandy is Cognac,” and more sage advice was ever uttered at the rail of a bar.  Now Louis XIII is a fabled bottle of Cognac and even the crystal decanter is gorgeous and a work of art, and the crystal work gets grander I presume as one gets higher up in to the heavens of the assorted versions of Louis as it was referred to, and tradition at least in the Detroit area was that if you had the last shot of Louis, you could take the bottle home with you, just for the price of the shot, which may be one of the best investments one can make.

Louis XIII is made by Remy Martin, one of the leading brands of Cognac, founded in 1724.  There are six fabled districts that the finest Cognacs come from and Remy Martin is known as a specialist in Fine Champagne Cognac and produces only Cognac from two areas; Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne, and these areas have nothing to do with the products from Epernay and Reims.  Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne have long been recognized for the ability to produce an end product that ages potentially for decades and perhaps centuries.  They are also proud that they age for a minimum of ten years, instead of the usual six years.  Cognac and Brandy are distilled wines, that is a wine is placed in a still and heated up and the finished product is called brouillis, which is then distilled again to create raw Cognac or bonne chauffe.  This colorless product which is made from a wine that considered thin and unattractive after years of aging becomes the thing that dreams are made of.  The raw Cognac is laid to rest in Limousine Oak barrels and that is where the color and the flavor evolve and the craftmanship of the Cellar Master as he blends the liquids from the different barrels that are stored for decades, just for the ability to blend.  One of the other considerations of the reason that Cognac is so expensive, is that while it is aging in the barrels there is a natural evaporation that occurs and this “Angel’s Breath” is considered to be the equivalent of the Cognac consumed in France each year. 

I mention all of this, because this is one of my favorite stories, and I do have plenty of them.  While in college I eventually chummed around with another student who was not into being a student and this was his fourth university to attend, and he was about four years older than I.  One of our “jobs” in the summer was to make sure that his parent’s monthly food tab was used at their two country clubs, one was just for the family and the other was for business, so twice a week we went golfing with a schedule of breakfast, nine holes, lunch, nine holes, dinner and then time at pub afterwards.  It was grueling work, but somehow, we managed to get through the day.  One day, after dinner, there was something special going on at the bar, so we left early and went back to his house, so that I could pick up my car and go home.  He lived in a separate wing on his parent’s home and the maid had quarters on the back end of his wing with a private hall that connected her suite to the main part of the house, so I never saw her.  My friend was thirsty and he left me in his parlor as he went off and returned with a beautiful crystal decanter that had maybe a couple of shots left in the bottle, and he also had grabbed a couple of snifters for the occasion.  It was Louie, and we proceeded to finish the bottle, at which time I professed to admiring the bottle and this was before I had learned of the traditional lore of claiming rights of ownership if one finished the bottle…he gave me the bottle.  Two days later when I saw him for our usual routine of the summer, he looked at me rather sheepishly, and asked if I could return the decanter.  His parents couldn’t have cared less that we finished the Cognac, but they sure wanted the bottle, so the following week, I returned the decanter.  So, for a week I had in my possession a legendary crystal bottle, and though I do eyeball the liquid level of every bottle of Louis that I see in a bar, I have never seen the levels low enough to pop for a shot. 

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The Party Continued

Posted on August 12, 2019 by thewineraconteur

One would almost think that my Bride and I are still teenagers from my recounting a day that started with a brunch and Mimosas that ended up a pool party and appetizers, but there is more to the day.  Actually, we can’t take too many of these days in a row, which is fine and anymore, I think two days in a row may be our limit, of course, we haven’t been tested or stretched out for a while.  My Sister-in-Law’s home was filling up with guests as the day progressed.  There were tables in set up in the garage, in the back yard off the pool and in the house proper.  The pool and hot tub were also getting a good workout on that hot summer day.  I being a pure hedonist stayed in the air-conditioned home and stayed in the dining room and away from all the high scenes of activity.  If I had availed my self of the pool, all of the guests would have left in horror, as I do not look like Victor Mature.

It was a day of grilling, which actually kept the main house quite comfortable, since the ovens and the ranges were not being utilized as much.  Some men, may not know their way around a kitchen, but they do take pride in the art of the barbecue.  If and when I did was years ago and another life before, it seems.  I defer to those that can and are able, though we did offer to bring some of the dishes that were going to be barbecued.  Actually, I think we looked rather strange, lugging this big cooler into the hall during the brunch party, but we kind of hid it under some tables that were used for displays.  We have this one cooler that can utilize the cigar/cigarette lighter in a car (which some people may not even know what I am talking about) and then we can make a modification to the electric cord and then plug the unit into a conventional wall socket.  The cooler is big enough to handle a couple of full beef tenderloins, a Caesar salad and the dressing, separately waiting to be combined and the most important category several bottles of wine that should be chilled.  So, there were plenty of choices from hot dogs and Brats, to filet medallions, so nobody had to suffer or starve.  

Even though there was so much red meat in abundance, the day was an extremely hot summer day with the classic humidity that Michigan is known for (all of those Great Lakes) so we were still drinking white wines late into the afternoon.  One of the white wines that we opened was a little older, but it was fair game that day and it was Chateau Souverain Chardonnay 2014.  Chateau Souverain is based in Alexander Valley and they specialize in single variety wines from Alexander Valley and Russian River Valley, both in Sonoma County and they also source from assorted North Coast appellations.   Chateau Souverain began in 1943 with the purchase of a winery and thirty acres on the slopes of Howell Mountain in Napa Valley.  The winery got its name from the French word for “sovereign.”  In 1973 the estate moved to Alexander Valley and in 2006 they relocated to the Asti winery, which was one of the oldest and largest wineries in Sonoma County.  E. & J. Gallo Winery purchased both the Asti winery and the Chateau Souverain brand in 2015, so this Chardonnay may be one of the last wines before the corporate change over.  There was some ripe fruit poking through, but I think the aging of this wine made it a bit more dry and mellow, but no signs of oxidation for foxing.   I will only mention one of the red wines of the day, but it was one that I had been chomping at the bit, to try, since I got it, and it was all through the friendship of Social Media, but it was not a gift.  I really wanted to try this wine with my Bride, as well as the Louisville clan, so I opened the bottle a couple of hours before we were going to have it, and yes it was worth the wait for the Chateau Anthonic Moulis-en-Medoc 2015.  Moulis-en-Medoc is a Commune that is next to Listrac and both of these are between Margaux and Saint Julien.  Chateau Anthonic is one of the oldest estates in Moulis and was first mentioned in 1850 and then it was known as Puy de Minjon and in 1932 it received the classification of “Cru Bourgeois Supereiur.”  The estate is about thirty hectares in size and encompasses two distinct types of soil, one is clay-limestone and the other is gravel.   The estate has had a few owners and name changes and eventually became Chateau Antonic, but then it was Anglicized to Anthonic to appeal to the British wine trade.  The estate grows Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, and this particular wine is a blend of seventy-one percent Merlot, twenty-seven percent Cabernet Sauvignon and two percent Cabernet Franc.  Even with the hectic pace of the day, I am very happy to say that this wine delivered the classic experience of a well-made Claret to me, and that is high praise that I learned from my wine teachers back in the Sixties and Seventies.  A delicious wine that is affordable and one cannot ask for more than that.

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A Reason to Continue

Posted on August 10, 2019 by thewineraconteur

Sometimes there is really no reason to have a party, except for “because.”  Since everyone got together for a graduation party brunch, the entire afternoon and evening had a gaping hole in the calendar.  Not to mention that the entire family was together, and there was a reason to continue with the revelry.  I mean if you think about it, it really would have been a shame to let the festivities of the day drizzle away so early.  So almost in the vein of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland saying “let’s have a play” we ended up saying “let’s have a party.

One of my Bride’s sister took off with the idea, she had just had her whole house painted and she was having a party.  She also has an in-ground pool and a big hot tub, not to mention that she still had tables and chairs in the garage from an earlier graduation party.  I am always amazed at the amount of noshes appear even before the grills are fired up.  Cheese, fruits, nuts, vegetables and assorted humous dishes appear early on, and even though we were all sated from the brunch, I guess there is always room for munchies, especially when there in Euchre and other card games being played.  I am always entranced watching how people just end up filling in for someone else at the card table and the rounds never slow down, even with the musical chairs.

We had brought some wines to accompany the different phases of this ad-hoc party and so did some of the others.  We brought a bottle of the Black Star Farms Arcturos Dry Riesling 2017 to get a response to the sweet wine drinkers and this wine was still too dry, but we tried.  In their Twentieth year of production Black Star Farms on Old Mission Peninsula in Michigan, they were honored to receive the 19’th Annual Canberra International Riesling Challenge (CIRC) -Best Wine of the 2018 Challenge and only the second time an American wine came out on top.  There were 567 Rieslings from six countries (Australian, New Zealand, USA, Germany, France and the Czech Republic).  The Black Star Farms Arcturos Dry Riesling 2017 scored 98 points, in addition to taking home Best Dry Riesling and Best American Riesling.  I don’t think we bought enough of this really pretty wine.  We then went to a bit crisper white wine and opened up some Chateau Ste. Michelle Sauvignon Blanc Columbia Valley 2016.  Chateau Ste. Michelle is the oldest and one of the most highly regarded wineries in Washington State.  They are best known for their Riesling.  It was originally founded as the American Wine Growers in 1954 with the merging of two companies that were formed after the repeal of the Prohibition Act in the 1930’s; the National Wine Company and the Pomerelle Wine Company.  In 1967 they introduced vinifera wines after working with Andre Tchelistcheff and they were released under the label of Ste. Michelle Vintners.  The Sauvignon Blanc was just an easy to drink wine that was produced using Stainless Steel to make the wine fruit forward and crisp.  

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Brunch at Mac & Rays

Posted on August 8, 2019 by thewineraconteur

Another Graduation Party is in the books and this one was at Mac & Rays.  The clan from Louisville came up to celebrate their twins graduating from High School, and they thought it was more beneficial for them to come up and have a party, rather than having the families all come down en masse.   My Sister-in-Law is my Bride’s Sister and that side of the family is huge and I sometimes have to think twice about who someone is and their actual relation.  My Brother-in-Law by marriage comes from a decent size family, but not of the magnitude of my Bride’s family.  I think it was a good call on their part, and there was a great turnout.  Mac & Rays is a bustling boating center, marina, condos, restaurants, bars and catering facility and halls in Harrison Township at MacRay Harbor on Anchor Bay.  I would have to say that this is probably one of the safest locations in Michigan if not in the country, because when you are driving to the facility, you drive along a high wire fence topped with barbed wire.  MacRay Harbor is along side one part of Selfridge Air National Guard Base and unless Canada declares war and invades Michigan, I would say this area is in great shape. 

Mac & Rays has a beautiful facility overlooking the marina and all of the boats moored there.  There were plenty of tables set up for all of the guests.  The arrangement was very conducive for having a brunch as there were plenty of options to choose from, and there was also an omelet station as well, to make everyone happy.  There was also a great sweet table arrangement set up, as I should know, because I couldn’t resist walking by and sampling the goods constantly and I am not even a pastry lover.  While my Bride was being the event photographer, a self-assumed position that she has volunteered for every occasion, there was also in competition with her, a photo booth; which seems to be all the rage for the last ten years at least, as it is a form of instant gratification, kind of like the old Polaroid cameras in my youth.  I really think that everyone was very happy with the entire party.

Not only were the people well fed, they were quite happy with the beverage counter, or should I say bar.  I mean Mac & Ray caters to the boating community and I may not know how that community is in other parts of the country, but in the Detroit area, it is a fun-loving crowd.  There was a full bar, but I may be slowing down but liquor and beer are both too heavy for me in the morning, but I am happy with Mimosas.  While some may denigrate Mimosas because the adulterate Orange Juice, I am very happy with them in the morning, even over a Bloody Mary.  The sparkling wine that was being used was Veuve du Vernay Brut NV.  Veuve du Vernay is a range of sparkling wines owned by Patriarche, a Beaune based company that is owned by the conglomerate Groupe Castel.  The wines are actually produced in Bordeaux.  They produce six different sparkling wines and all but one of the wines are produced using the Charmat Method.  The flagship wine of the group, the Brut is made with Colombard, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay.  For the sake of this article, I tried some of the wine prior to the addition of the Orange Juice and it was an easy drinking bubbly with nothing to complain about; albeit that it is not at the top of the heap, but most people like to be festive without breaking the bank.  It was a delightful party. 

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Chateau Bel-Air Laclotte

Posted on August 6, 2019 by thewineraconteur

The second wine that I picked up from the Fine Wine Source Wine Club for July was Chateau Bel-Air Laclotte.  Usually, as is my disposition, I wander around the shop and do some wine tastings while I am there.  Unfortunately, I was running around, in fact the whole month of July will go down in the books as a very hectic month for me and it is a good thing that I gave up smoking, or I would have been chain smoking cigars to keep my sanity, but that is for another time and another setting, if I ever get to wanting to remember the events.   Also, the wine shop was very busy, which is a great thing, and not with tastings, but with filling wine orders for customers. 

Chateau Bel-Air Laclotte 2015 is a Bordeaux wine, located in Saint Gervais about twenty-two kilometers from the city center of Bordeaux, but it is not a lauded commune.  The majority of the wines from Bordeaux carry the Bordeaux AOC which is the entire region that surrounds all those great communes that one immediately thinks of, when they think of the name Bordeaux.  The three main grapes of the entire region are Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.  The owner of Chateau Bel-Air Laclotte, the Earl Vignobles Stephan Motut was born on the property and inherited thirty-two hectares of the vineyard, the chateau and the outlying fields in 2004.  The vineyards are planted in a clay-limestone soil, which works for the winery as the wine is seventy percent Merlot and thirty percent Cabernet Franc.  I couldn’t find any production notes on this wine, but I will venture to say that it was probably aged for at least a year, looking at the spread of time from vintage to when it is being sold at the shop. 

Once again, this is a wine that I have not tasted, but there are two sets of tasting notes that I have.  The first mentions Blackberry, Raspberry and Red Plum.  The owner of the shop was a bit more enthusiastic in the description and said that it was rich and loaded with complexity and layers of flavor, including terroir and hints of tobacco and leather.  Of course, a Bordeaux wine is always the perfect wine to pair with lamb, beef, veal or pork, especially if they are roasted.  This is another wine that I will open soon, because who can’t resist the potential thought of an enjoyable and affordable Bordeaux wine. 

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Tortoise Creek Mission Grove Pinot Noir

Posted on August 4, 2019 by thewineraconteur

I recently picked up the from the Fine Wine Source Wine Club, the Tortoise Creek “Mission Grove” Pinot Noir 2017.  Tortoise Creek is part of the much larger Masterwines group which currently has six labels.  Masterwines was started by Mel and Janie Master in 1990 sourcing wines from the Languedoc.  Masterwines now produces wine in France, Italy, California, Washington and Oregon. 

Tortoise Creek is a line of single variety wines and they were originally in the Lodi region of California and the majority of the wines are certified sustainable.  Starting with the 2009 vintage Tortoise Creek has partnered with the Chelonian Research Foundation and they donate a portion of the proceeds to benefit and the conservation of turtles and tortoises, and the Foundation was founded in 1992 to support worldwide turtle and tortoise research.  “Mission Grove” refers to the native Californian Olive cultivar, originally planted at the San Diego Mission by Franciscan Monks, and cultivar refers to the difference of the olive, an olive variety is original, and a cultivar had some human intervention, funny what I learn about.  These Mission Groves are found northward bound from San Diego and it is not surprising to find that often there are vineyards alongside these olive groves, just like what is found in Europe, where the Franciscan Monks came from.  This wine carries a California AVA, because sixty percent of the grapes come from the Clarksburg region and the other forty percent come from the Monterey region.  The juice had a seven- day fermentation process and then was aged for twelve months in French Oak.

There are a couple of tasting notes furnished for the wine, as I have not had a chance to try the wine.  One mentions a nose of violets and ripe cherries with a finish of raspberries and other red fruits.  The other mentioned hints of rhubarb, dried cherries and strawberries and this was from the owner of the Fine Wine Source.  It has been suggested that this wine would be best for salmon, pork or chicken and for others a nice mushroom entrée.  I am sure that this wine will be tried sooner, rather than later. 

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Chateau Margaux 1989

Posted on August 2, 2019 by thewineraconteur

How would you respond if someone that you know asks you to bring a decanter?  Well since it was my Brother-in-Law and he is staying at a hotel, I didn’t even ask why, or what, or how or any of the questions that we learned one semester in an English course on Journalism.  Unfortunately, I don’t think “journalists” of today ask those questions either, but I digress.  I quickly found a decanter, my best cork screw, an “Ah-so” just in case, a foil cutter, and because I almost made it to an Eagle Scout a funnel and a coffee filter.  My Brother-in-Law doesn’t make requests like this lightly, as I remember one trip that we made down there to see them, he had asked that we bring two decanters and he and I decanted a Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1961, a Chateau Margaux 1961, a Chateau Latour 1961 and a Chateau d’Yquem 1961.  Since that dinner party, he has asked me to duplicate such services and who am I to object?  I was like a kid waiting for the penny candy store to open when I had a dime in the palm of my hand.  

Since I had to spoil the surprise with my blurting out the wine in the title of this article, I was still impressed and in awe, as I usually don’t have a chance to encounter a thirty-year-old First Growth from the Medoc.  As I looked back, Chateau Margaux is probably the one First Growth that I have enjoyed more often than any other of those heavy hitters, so I guess God does smile upon me.  Since the Twelfth Century, “La Mothe de Margaux” was known, or “the Margaux Mound” as it is the highest elevation in the Medoc and easily seen, even by laymen.  At the end of the Seventeenth Century Chateau Margaux occupied 265 hectares, a third of the land devoted to vines and it has stayed that way ever since.  As the fame of Chateau Margaux grew both across the Channel and across the Atlantic Ocean, the winery hit a brick wall, as the “people” took over the estate and the Lord of the manor was introduced to the guillotine.  In 1801 there was a new owner, and it was he that razed the old home and built the edifice that is now recognized as Chateau Margaux.  In 1855 at the Second Universal Exhibition, a blind tasting created the Official Classification which has really stood the test of time with only some tweaking since the exhibition. The winery survived the blight of Phylloxera and the vines were grafted with vines from America that were resistant to Phylloxera and the winery continued to make its well-respected wines.  While the winery has had different owners and the ups and downs of vintages, it is still a First Growth and maintains that image. 

1989 was considered a dream year at Chateau Margaux, as it was one of the earliest harvests since 1893 and it had one of the highest sugar levels since their legendary 1982 vintage.  The harvest was hot and dry with not one day of rain to create any problems.  The wine is a classic blend for the winery of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.  With all of the accoutrements that I took to open the wine, only the foil cutter and the corkscrew was necessary.  The thirty-year-old cork held and did the job it was made for and I might add that the ullage was very promising.   I had forgotten to bring a candle, so we used the beam from my iPhone so that I could watch the wine at the neck of the bottle for if and when the sledge began appearing and it was not excessive.  As I decanted the wine, I had first dibs on the nose of the wine, but the whole suite was luxuriating in the wine and the fruit was still very strong.  We actually left the suite and went and had dinner and returned to enjoy the wine with some cheese and crackers after dinner.  Part of the discussion during dinner was about the wine that had been decanted and when we returned and poured some of the wine, the color was still strong, as I was anticipating some brownish-brick red color that I have encountered over the years with older wines, but this ’89 was still like a teenager with its feistiness.  The winery claimed that they thought the wine was excellent for drinking from day one, but after thirty years, the dark cherries and fruit was still holding strong along with the spices that I always expect from any of the Great Growths.  The terroir was still there, but the tannins had softened a bit.  I did send out a few announcements of this wine to some dear friends that evening, but the general consensus was that we had opened this wine too soon, which made my Brother-in-Law very happy, as he told me that he still has a few more in the cellar. As an added bonus and a great way to end this article, when I went to photograph the cork and removed it from the bottle, the dregs of the bottle still exploded a month later with black cherries and I am still smiling as I write this last sentence.

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The Night Before

Posted on July 31, 2019 by thewineraconteur

I have stated that we have been in the midst of graduation parties and the clan from Louisville have twins that graduated this year.  Since almost all of their relatives, for both of the parents are in the Detroit area, they decided to have the celebration up in the Metropolitan area, I guess rather than expecting everyone to drive down to Louisville, though some of us, I am sure would have, but the turn out would have been considerably lighter in attendance.  They had shipped some of the stuff for the party ahead of time to our house, for convenience, especially since the center pieces were going to made and carried to the party.  They also had packed lighter, since two of the kids would be coming in another vehicle, and since they had less, they had an adventure and did the trip in their new Tesla, which held four of the family members quite comfortably.   They had to schedule a lunch break in Dayton, while the car got a “charging” to make the rest of the trip.  Since they were staying in their usual residence, which is only a stone’s through from us, we met them for dinner after they unpacked and had the car parked overnight at one of the hotel’s charging stations. 

That night there were six of us for dinner at Sweet Lorraine’s, one of the usual locations that we all get together, especially the first night, because they can walk back to their suite.  I remember the original Sweet Lorraine’s when they opened up, while I was in college and Lorraine was Detroit’s Alice Waters.  In fact, as a side note, we just recently had to drive by the original restaurant location and it was said to see all locked up with “For Sale” signs on the building.  The children have literally grown up with this restaurant, so they knew almost exactly what to order, and since one of the children requires a special regimen and it has always been no problem accommodating his diet. The adults sat at one end and caught up, through the course of a couple of different appetizers and four different entrée orders.  A fun evening and it seems if the two sisters have never been apart, even with the miles in between, almost as if they still live in the same community, if not the same block and street. 

After a needed cocktail for the travelers, we all shared a couple of bottles of Ramon Bilbao Rioja Crianza 2015.  Even though there are a few grapes that are allowed traditionally to make Rioja, this wine was pure Tempranillo. Ramon Bilbao was established in the Rioja Alto back in 1924 and they are firmly ensconced in the region making quality wines. This particular bottle was a Crianza which by law in Spain requires a minimum of twelve months in oak and then another twelve months in bottle before being released.  Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention that my Brother-in-Law called me and asked if I could bring over a decanter, before we had dinner. 

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