A Remembrance

Posted on November 6, 2017 by thewineraconteur

I very seldom stray from the fond memories of wine, but bear with me, as I am today. “Woulda, coulda, shoulda” is an expression that I heard bandied about in my youth and now as I am older and can reflect, the expression is much more meaningful and poignant. To my readers that follow my writings they know that I have a group of characters that I have given nom de plumes and I do this, to maintain their sense of anonymity. My old music teacher from my Junior High School passed away and he really touched a lot more lives than one can imagine. I saw references to some historic films like “Goodbye Mr. Chips” and “Mr. Holland’s Opus” and I can understand why those films were selected. I grew up in a middle-class area of Detroit and back then the city was still more “white” and segregated. I had experienced already at that youthful age teachers of assorted ethnic and racial backgrounds, but they were all part of a homogenous scene that was the norm. Then I and others in my school encountered the new music teacher and he wore turtlenecks instead of neckties and he had an “Afro.” He was also “cool” in a very sublime manner, it wasn’t an affectation. That was back when music was part of the curriculum of education and this teacher made students want to learn how to play an instrument. I learned how to play the alto saxophone and I guess I was decent enough, because I went from second chair, second alto sax to first chair, first alto sax and that was quite an accomplishment, because the saxophone was the instrument of choice for this teacher. Though I was totally amazed, because he could play every instrument in the band and if a student was having problems, he would actually take their instrument and play the movement for them to make them see how it should be done. We would have the classic vanilla type of school music to perform, but this teacher would sometimes dip into his own pocket and buy sheet music for the band of music that was “hot” or not considered appropriate. He would even have the assorted parts of the band stand to play certain movements, just like we were part of the big swing orchestras of the Forties and the Fifties. I can also remember vividly hearing him yell “B-flat saxophones” when I knew it was me that missed that note.


After I had left the Junior High, I would get messages eventually that he would like me to come and play with the band when I was in high school, and by that time I was playing tenor saxophone, but he needed a baritone sax, which I did not have, but he allowed me to play his when he needed that distinctive sound. It was because of this teacher that forced my Father to find a Selmer saxophone for me, and it was a basket case sitting in the attic of a former jazz musician that he knew, and we got it totally refurbished for much less than what a Selmer would cost new, and I was a cool dude. I never even had to do an audition for my High School band, because of my grades from this teacher, was recognized as more important than the audition. I am getting rather teary-eyed as I write this, as I realize that as time went on, I had lost touch, though I had heard that he was in charge of the entire music department for the city, by the time that he retired. After his retirement, he did not sit idle, he and a large group of also retired musicians created a big bad that would perform and just charge enough to cover the rental of the hall where the concert took place and the group was even named after him. When the alumni of the Junior High began having reunions, this teacher showed up with his saxophone, from the very first reunion which was rather impromptu at a bar, and he asked if he could sit in with the musicians that were playing at that bar. He also brought his saxophone to some of the other reunions and played with his former students, some unlike me, became either professional or semi-professional musicians and those were some nights to remember.


“Woulda, coulda, shoulda” is my lament with the fast-past world of today, I would find out about his performances with his big band at halls or even the famous Baker’s Keyboard Lounge, the longest continuous jazz nightclub in the country. I was hoping to find one of my matchbooks from there, but as is the case, when you need it, it is not easy to find. Baker’s was host to such luminaries of music as Dave Brubeck, Gerry Mulligan, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, Oscar Peterson, George Shearing, Sarah Vaughn, Joe Williams, Maynard Ferguson, Cab Calloway, Woody Herman, Nat “King” Cole, Rick Margitza and my teacher. It was also a “Would, coulda, shoulda,” moment for his funeral, as there was no viewing the night before the funeral, and the day of the funeral I had a prior commitment that I could not alter. I know that some of the alumni that he touched did attend, but I still feel sad that I wasn’t there, as I know that I would have heard through all of the eulogies, discussions and music “B-flat saxophones” and it would have been oh-so proper.

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Chartreuse

Posted on November 4, 2017 by thewineraconteur

Chartreuse is a color, a digestif and all found in a restaurant by the same name. It is a very quaint restaurant in the corner of the Park Shelton and it looks upon the Detroit Institute of Arts. It has the feel of a courtyard adjacent to an atelier. There are hanging plants from the rafters, there is a “living wall” near the bar, and a mural near the entrance with splashes of chartreuse color. It is a well-run operation with an abundance of trained help that work like Ninjas, keeping the water glasses filled, plates removed and new plates served all seamlessly and without interrupting dinner conversations. The restaurant was packed with all of the tables being utilized, we had no reservation and we had seats at the bar, and as long as the bar was in both directions, all of those seats were taken as well, as well as the sofas in the lounge area. My Bride was asking me what Chartreuse tastes like, and they immediately offered her a sample to try, as they stock several different brands of this famed drink, though she decided that she would prefer to have wine for the evening. The patron mix was interesting, half of the crowd was from about my generation and the men all had sport coats on, and the other half is what is now termed hipster. They were all there to enjoy the food.


After we had our appetizer and some wine, we selected our dinner choices. The menu was tight and the food was fresh, as the chef goes shopping daily to determine the menu. My Bride had the Short Ribs which had a Fusion accent to this classic dish, as it was prepared with Coconut Rice and a Mango-Pineapple Hot Sauce, I was not as daring, but it was right up her alley. I went with the Duck Confit, a natural selection for me when offered, and it came with Barley Risotto, Blueberry Mosturda and Mushrooms; I was a little concerned that the dish might have been too sweet for me, but there was just a tinge of sweetness. In fact, most of the food critics in the area tout the fact that if there is a fruit and mustard combination, don’t pass it up, and they were right. We then shared a Key Lime Pot de Crème with Michigan Blueberries, Graham Crackers and a Sea-Salt Chocolate bar; not overly sweet and a very enjoyable consistency.


As I said in the last article, the wine carte was very tight and well thought out. They were also touting California wines and donating proceeds from the sales for the month to send to California, so we did our part for dinner. My Bride had the Broc Cellars Love Red North Coast 2016. This was a blend of Carignan, Syrah and Valdiguie. Valdiguie is found in the Vin du Pays in the Languedoc-Roussillon region as well in Provence, it has been grown for years in Napa and was originally called Napa Gamay, but that name is no longer being used since the grape has been identified properly. The fruit is from the Frei Vineyard in Solano County’s Green Valley and the neighboring Wirth Ranch and Parenti Ranch. Chris Brockway calls his facility an urban winery as it is in Berkley and he prides himself on great contracts with specific growers. This wine was aged for eight months in neutral French Oak and it paired well with her dish, even with the hot sauce. Since I had the duck, I am a creature of habit and I looked for a Pinot Noir. I had the Bench Pinot Noir 2015 from the Sonoma Coast of Sonoma County. This wine is made by Brack Mountain Wine Company and they did a fine job with this finicky grape. Seventy percent of the fruit was destemmed and then the balance was placed in clusters atop of the first grapes for the pressing. After the fermentation period the wine was aged for eleven months in French Oak, of which thirty percent was new. I was very happy with the wine and you could taste the artisan and craftmanship in the glass. I am sure that we will be back, and I think that I delayed trying the restaurant for a while, because a couple years back they were selected as the Restaurant of the Year by the Detroit Free Press, and I am always afraid that an honor like that can be detrimental at times, but not at Chartreuse.

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The Park Shelton

Posted on November 2, 2017 by thewineraconteur

After going to the Detroit Institute of Arts we walked across the street to have dinner at Chartreuse restaurant in the legendary Park Shelton. This was a hotel back in the day, famed for having Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo living there, when he was painting the masterpiece of a mural on the walls of the DIA glorifying the automobile and the assembly line. The hotel was opened in 1926 as the Wardell Hotel, named after Fred Wardell of the Eureka Vacuum Company. Later it became part of the Sheraton group, originally as the Wardell-Sheraton, then later as the Park-Sheraton. When it ceased to be part of the Sheraton group it became the Park Shelton and it went from a hotel to an apartment building and now condominiums. Some of the famous celebrities that frequented there were George Burns and Gracie Allen, and Bob Hope. We also had a chance to wander the main floor which besides have Chartreuse also had another restaurant and some independent ladies retail shops. One could still see the grandeur of the old hotel in some of the shops.


Chartreuse is a bistro on the corner of the hotel looking onto the DIA. When I originally tried to get a reservation, I was told that the earliest table I could get was for after eight that evening. The lady that answered the phone then suggested that they maintain open seating around the bar and that it was first come, first served, so we promptly got there before they opened at five. There were a couple of sofas in the bar area with low tables, that I did not think would be good for my back, so we took two seats at the long bar at the corner. My Bride at first was chagrined about the location, until she realized that she could watch the food preparation, as the kitchen was right off the bar. The menu was rather short, but well thought out and our waitress explained how the menu changes weekly if not daily, depending on what the chef has selected while out shopping. There were a few items that stayed the same, but all others were subject to change. Some of the dishes were cold and some hot, some for carnivores and some for vegans, so everyone could find something to eat. She even suggested that we try a new appetizer that was just out for the first time, which we did. We shared an order of Wagyu Beef Tartare with Avocado, Chili Mayonnaise, Scallions and house-made Tortilla chips with African and Mediterranean spices. It was delicious and a harbinger of what we could expect for the rest of our meal.


As I said the menu was short and well thought out, and so was the wine carte. Most of the wines were not what is normally encountered and certainly not the run of the mill selection found usually. My Bride still wanted something bubbly after we had the Prosecco during our lunch at the museum. She had a glass of the Stephanie Serol Rosé Turbullent NV sparkling wine made of Gamay from the Cote Roannaise AOD from the Loire Valley. A charming wine with a delightful flavor and made in the “Methode Ancestrale” way, which is probably the first method developed to make commercially effervescent and sparkling wines, and one of the more potentially difficult ways to do it. The wine is originally fermented in concrete and then bottled, with no additional dosage, just from the natural sugar. The bottles go through the usual time lapse and they go through a disgorgement, just to remove the deposit that naturally occurs in this process. I wanted to start out with a white wine, and the main thrust of the wine carte focused on California and they were donating some of the proceeds from the sales to aid after the fires in the wine country. I had the Broc Cellars Shell Creek Vineyard Chenin Blanc Paso Robles 2016. Chris Brockway has an urban winery in Berkley and one of the contracts he maintains is with Shell Creek Vineyard for their fruit. Shell Creek Vineyard was planted with vines in 1972, but the Stanton family has owned the land since the late 1800’s. The fruit is direct pressed, fermented and aged in a combination of a 500 Liter Stockinger (Austrian wood) and one-year old barrels for nine months with no filtration. The winery made a total of two-hundred cases of this wine, so that explains why I had never heard of it, or had the chance to try it before. I found it to be an excellent glass of wine to start the night off with.

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Monet and Church

Posted on October 31, 2017 by thewineraconteur

The Detroit Institute of Arts had just opened up a new exhibit and we made an afternoon at this grand museum, one of the finest in the country. The exhibit of Claude Monet and Frederic Church showcased two distinct artists and genres. The “Monet: Framing Life” centered around the Institutes only Monet piece “Rounded Flower Bed” which was formerly known as “Gladioli” and the name was changed after new research. There were ten other paintings including works by his fellow friend and Impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir during the early years in Argenteuil. The “Church: A Painter’s Pilgrimage” focused on one of America’s most famous and financially successful painter of the mid Nineteenth Century; and the working vacation that he and his family took to the Levant. Two completely different styles of painting in a grand setting. I knew that my Bride was an avid Monet fan, as she fell in love with his work when she discovered some of his greatest pieces on a vacation that she had in Paris, long before we met.


After we toured the exhibit, we decided to stop and have a quick bite to eat, as we were going to try a new restaurant (to us) that was across the street from the DIA. The museum has two cafes and we decided to dine at the Kresge Court, which is now enclosed and protected from the elements, but when I was a youth and I sometimes skipped a day of high school, I would spend the day at the museum and have a bite at this same court, and my Bride used to go here for their Brunch with Bach events. The Kresge Court is named for the philanthropic family that started with Sebastien Spering Kresge who formed the S.S. Kresge stores, one of the original “dime stores” and in fact the first one was located on Woodward Avenue between Grand River and State Street, just a few miles from the DIA; the company eventually ceased the “dime stores” after the success of their K-Mart stores. In this beautiful setting we decided to share a “Midtown” which was Capicola, Bavarian Ham, Genoa Salami, tomato, arugula with Dijon mayo on a ciabatta with some house-made chips.


We had also developed a thirst as the environmentally controlled atmosphere in the museum had us feeling a bit dry. So, we had to have some ice water and we also shared a couple of splits of wine. I mean this trip would not have even been mentioned if we only drank water. The splits were Cavit Lunetta Prosecco Brut NV, and Lunetta means “Little Moon.” Cavit is the largest producer of Prosecco and they own the largest facility in Italy strictly devoted to the production of sparkling wine. Since this was Prosecco it is all Prosecco grapes, or as it is known outside of the Prosecco region as Glera. The wine is made in the Charmat Method, and the secondary fermentation takes thirty days in Stainless Steel. The wine was just perfect for the sandwich and then we spent a couple of hours looking at some of the other galleries at the DIA, before we went off for dinner.

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Langdon Hall

Posted on October 29, 2017 by thewineraconteur

I recently learned of Langdon Hall Hotel and Spa in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. One of my cast of characters, The Messenger, was going on holidays with her daughter and she was discussing potential sites and she also asked about a wine that they were taking with them. When I was a kid there was no Cambridge in Ontario, as it was then known as Galt and it was just a town that we would pass going from Windsor to Saint Catherines to visit family. Langdon Hall is a stately home and grounds that has developed over the years to a year-round hotel and spa for relaxation and getaways. They are now part of the syndicated Relais & Chateaux group of resorts, which are all privately owned and must get accreditation; as a side note there are thirteen resorts throughout Canada.


When I am not acquainted with a resort or restaurant and someone asks my opinion, I go to the Wine Spectator magazine’s issue of “The List” that I keep on my somewhat cluttered desk. I use “The List” as a reference to see how a restaurant is rated. My feeling is that if a restaurant has a good wine list, then the food should be in the same comparable rating, and I have only been disappointed a couple of times over the decades. Their restaurant was awarded the “Best of Award of Excellence” with a selection of wines numbering over fifteen-hundred bottles with strengths in Burgundy, Rhone, Bordeaux, Italy, California and Canada. The wine prices are listed as moderate, and they maintain a $21.00 corkage fee. The menu is French and the menu prices are listed as expensive. To give you an idea of the menu, the meal started off with Sourdough bread with apricot and sunflower. There was a second course of Dressed Snow Crab with an Apple Gelee. The Messenger had Lamb and her daughter enjoyed Scallops and I saw the photos and all the dishes looked wonderful.


The funny thing is, that with all the wonderful wines listed on their carte on their website, The Messenger and her daughter are not really wine drinkers, but she will ask me about certain wines for dinners at her house for special occasions. They took a bottle of wine with them to their hotel room to enjoy and relax with. The wine was a bottle of Heinz Eifel Shine Riesling 2014 that they had bought at The Wine Store, which is the government regulated wine shops in Canada, just as one has to go to The Beer Store and the Liquor Control Board, but hopefully there will be new regulations in Canada. Heinz Eifel founded the Romerhof Winery in 1979 and this particular wine is a generic Riesling made in Stainless Steel vats. Since I know that The Messenger likes her wines on the sweeter side and that she avoids red wines, I would have to presume that wine was on the sweet side. I found reading about the estate and looking at their menus and wine lists quite fascinating, and perhaps one day, we may make a trip there.

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Number 22

Posted on October 27, 2017 by thewineraconteur

Anniversary (check), Sweetest Day (check), dining and dancing (check), old nerve from an emergency root canal from years ago decides to act up (not on the agenda). There is a predominately Michigan, but it has entered into a couple of other mid-west states as well, holiday known as Sweetest Day. I am sure that it was created by the confectionary industry and is celebrated on the third Saturday in the month of October. Actually, I know this, because twenty-two years ago on a Sweetest Day Saturday, my Bride and I had our nuptials and we gave small boxes of chocolate candies to all of our guests that evening. We were all set to celebrate our anniversary with two other couples and I was in agony. I had to go see my dentist and he had to drill through an old crown to alleviate the situation. With the aid of the Novocain and later some pain medication we kept our dinner date, though I was not in the best of moods. Also, the restaurant that I wanted to try did not take reservations, and holiday evenings usually bring out the poorest service.


We arrived at the restaurant before 6:30, knowing how difficult a table for six could be, and we even tried to call ahead to see if they would hold a table, they wouldn’t, but they assured us that they had some available, and they did. I am glad that we got there when we did, because the restaurant was almost packed and it was an extremely large dining area and they had removed all the folding partitions that they probably used for private parties. We could see the stage and the dance floor from our table, so that was good. The restaurant is a fifty-year-old Steak House and is known for their food and for their live music, which is dance music from another era when couples held each other and actually had rhythm and bona-fide steps and not where they just kind of stand in one spot and kind of sway to the music. When the waitress was taking the orders for our table, when she got to the soup course I wanted the French Onion soup which came at a premium and then I was told that a cheese topping was also additional and when I commented that French Onion soup is traditionally topped with cheese, to which she just asked if I wanted to pay for the cheese or not; when I found out that it was Mozzarella instead of aged Gruyere, so I declined. My Bride ordered the Lemon Rice Chicken soup. We both had salads. My Bride ordered the Lump Crab Encrusted Whitefish topped with Panko bread crumbs and an extra order of asparagus. I had the Veal Oscar, thin medallions of veal topped with crab meat, asparagus and Béarnaise Sauce. The other couples had similar dishes and they were also surprised about the French Onion soup, so it wasn’t just me. I am glad that we did not order a dessert, they were huge.


The restaurant as I said was packed and I am sure that the wait staff was frazzled, but I did have to ask our server if we could get our bottle of wine sometime this year, my good spirits were a bit frazzled from the residual pain in my tooth. I was amazed at the rather poor wine training our server had, since there was a full page of wines in small print including the likes of Opus One. After the cork was removed from the bottle, the cork was just put into her apron, and when then she poured a taste for me in the glass, but as I reached over to take a taste, she was already pouring the wine into my Bride’s glass; thankfully the wine was fine. We had a bottle of Domaine Bois de Boursan Chateauneuf- du-Pape 2014. This is a relatively new winery for the Rhone as they were established in 1955. Chateauneuf-du-Pape is one of the few wine appellations that allow a mix of up to eighteen different grapes to be used, including white grapes for a red wine. The three main varietals for the region Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre were blended with Counoise, Cinsault, Clairette, Roussanne and Bourbclenc (the last two being white). This wine is ferment initially on the lees for four to eight weeks in a mix of concrete and Stainless Steel and then the wine is aged for twenty-four months in old oak barrels. There is a ten-month additional aging period once the wine is bottled before it is released. My Bride and I did get a chance to do some dancing and I will go back there again on a non-holiday evening and give them another chance, and a toast to my Bride.

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He Scores

Posted on October 25, 2017 by thewineraconteur

Have you ever wondered what is poured into a Stanley Cup when the big hockey game is finished? The people at D. Vine Wine that were at a wine tasting the other night, had a chance to find out, and not only that, we had a chance to try it as well. Jason Earnest, the only non-professional hockey player in the ownership of Vineyard 36 had brought samples of most of the wines that the winery produces. Which was really great, as most of the wine that they made is now sold out.


The last two wines that we were going to taste were going to be done side by side; and that got most us rather excited and very interested. The Vineyard 36 Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 was their premier wine and it had a beautiful color, a great nose and long legs. It even surpassed the Vineyard 36 Foundation 2014 that we had just tried. The fruit for this wine was also harvested from their micro sites in St. Helena and Coombsville and it was also aged for twenty-four months. The only difference in this wine was that fifty percent of the French oak barrels were new and it while it was only a twenty percent difference, the flavor was most noticeable.


The last wine of the evening, that was being presented side by side was from the library of the winery and it was the only case of it in the state of Michigan. We had a chance to try the Vineyard 36 Cabernet Sauvignon 2012, which had the same technical notes of production as the 2013. I also noted that even though this is a relatively new winery, they spent extra money to have each label different, which may make it harder, from a marketing and sales approach, but I guess that it works for them. Jason Earnest as he was talking about the wine, very diplomatically hinted about where the micro lots were, who owned them, but since there was not a major contract signed demanding that the private vineyard be identified, which would also greatly increase the price of the grapes and hence the wine, the vineyard was not named. This wine was even more of everything, then the 2013 and everyone could certainly agree on that. The other thing that I noticed that was different was that this wine also had an additional red plastic seal over the capsule to ensure that it would stay air-tight. I also got an extra souvenir of the evening as Jason Earnest signed the emptied bottles and I got one of the 2012, which makes for a wonderful keepsake, since the label was printed on the bottle. This was the wine that was poured into the Stanley Cup and there were only five-hundred cases of this vintage made. They are actually holding most of this wine in their library for future Stanley Cup celebrations.

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A Night with Jason Earnest

Posted on October 23, 2017 by thewineraconteur

A hockey night at D. Vine Wines with no Don Cherry, in fact we had the finance partner for the evening and he was passionate about the wines. I mean Detroit is a hockey town and has been forever. The Original Six is part of Detroit’s legacy concerning hockey and most people think of hockey as a beer sport, I mean when one thought of hockey, one thought of Canada, and when one thought of Canada they either thought of Molson’s and Labatt’s or Whisky without the superfluous “e.” Of course, that was years ago and the sport has changed and so have the players, along with Canada and everything else in this dynamic world. My family is from Canada and I can remember my first pair of CCM skates, almost a rite of passage, but alas I bombed at skating, to this day, I still have trouble going backwards on them.


As Jason Earnest was explaining the genesis of Vineyard 36, he explained that both Tim Gleason and Cam Ward both discovered wine in restaurants and dinner parties with their fellow team mates. Hockey players these days are paid princely sums of money and with that comes the trappings of the position. It is only natural that fine wines come into the picture. Somehow a lager with an aged Kobe steak almost sounds uncivilized and professional athletes can indulge in First Growths and Grand Crus and cult wines much easier than the majority of the fans. As Jason was telling the story the three of them finalized the plans to become winemakers over dinner in Manhattan. These two hockey players took their appreciation for wines one step further and became winemakers, but they stayed humble and didn’t use their names and status as marketing tools, they let the wine be the spokesperson, and the wines that we tried that evening did an excellent job of selling themselves.


After having the Unmask and then the Cross Check wine, it was only fitting that the third wine of the evening was Vineyard 36 Foundation Cabernet Sauvignon 2014. Even the label demanded to be placed third in the tasting order as it had a simple white label with a basic hockey rink in silver, with the numeral three in Roman numerals for the Silver won by the U.S. Olympics team and if you look closely at the white ice background of the label one can see all of the cuts in the ice from the skates that have traversed the arena, until they can smooth the ice again. This wine is their base wine and their base wine could easily compete with other wineries top of the line selection. This Cabernet Sauvignon was made from fruit harvested from their micro-sites in St. Helena and Coombsville. This wine was aged for twenty-four months in French oak, but with thirty percent of the barrels being new. The wine delivered a great nose, long legs, deep color and a strong after taste, all the hall marks of what I look for in a good wine. I couldn’t wait for the last two wines to be poured and tasted.

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Vineyard 36

Posted on October 21, 2017 by thewineraconteur

Hockey and wine, go together, just ask Tim Gleason #6 and Cam Ward #30 who are partners with Jason Earnest in Vineyard 36 from Napa Valley. The two hockey players combined their jersey numbers to create the name of the winery. They both were introduced to wine having dinners with other fellow hockey players and they really enjoyed what they were drinking, and they took the next big step and they went to where the action is, in Napa Valley. Jason Earnest the third partner in the equation comes from a financial background, so they were all neophytes to winemaking, but they had great enthusiasm. They hired winemaker David Tate from Montebello for his expertise and they were off and running, or should I say skating.


I went to a wine tasting at D. Vine Wine in Livonia along with many others to hear what Jason Earnest had to say about the wines and the winery. The first wine that was discussed and tasted was Vineyard 36 Unmask Red Wine 2015. It was described as a Rhone style, perhaps because it was three quarters Syrah. The other grapes that were blended in with the Syrah was Zinfandel, Merlot and Mourvedre. The wine was aged for twenty-four months in neutral French Oak barrels. I found the wine to be very mellow and even with all that Syrah, I could taste some of the Zin permeate the flavor and this would be a great pairing with a steak. The black and white label features one the icemen without his head covering looking rather intense at the game he is watching.


The Vineyard 36 Cross Check Red Wine 2015 was the next wine and it is also from Napa Valley. As you notice the hockey terms are apparent in the wines. This wine label is also in black and white and shows one of the partners rather beaten up, and Jason showed us the actual photograph in color and it was rather graphic and the final artwork renders it much more saleable in my humble opinion. This wine was seventy-five percent Petite Sirah with twenty percent Zinfandel and the rest was Petite Verdot. This wine was also aged for twenty-four months in neutral French oak. I found that the fruit was much more prevalent and forward in this wine and I think that it would be better with a roast turkey with the holiday coming up.

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Two Great Reds

Posted on October 19, 2017 by thewineraconteur

The other day I decided to go to another wine tasting, I only go if I am free. You would think that since I always write about wines that I would center my life around wine events, but that is not the case. Most of the time I prefer having wine with friends over dinner. I find that some wine events are too pretentious for me, as I guess that I have been enjoying them for so many decades that the novelty wore off years ago. I also get annoyed when I see people preening and posing with stemware, as for me it is what is in the glass that counts and not who I can impress, not that I cannot discuss different wines and vintages.


I went to a wine shop that I enjoy near me, since they now have new owners and the wine tasting bar is the center of attention. I have found that D. Vine Wine is a relaxing way to go for an evening. They have a lecture about the wines from a gentleman that makes me a teenager compared to his years of wine experience. Also, the crowd that usually attends the tasting night are far from poseurs. Between the talks and the questions from the crowd, it makes for an interesting couple of hours and the wines are much better since the new owners. I have also enjoyed getting there a little early, as you never know what may be poured for the guests to get them in the mood, not that they need any prodding, but it is a great touch.


I got a chance to try two wines that I was not even aware of, which isn’t that difficult considering all the wineries that are out there and more it seems each year. The first pour that I had was Ferrari-Carano Prevail Back Forty 2011 from the Alexander Valley. Ferrari-Carano is a winery that I am well aware of, in their popular priced offerings, but this was far superior to their wines that I usually encounter when we are out for dinner. This is a mountain vineyard and they have added some Syrah and Cabernet Franc to the Cabernet Sauvignon wine and it is aged in a mix of Hungarian and French Oak, with some being older barrels. It was a great wine to start the evening off right and the next wine, I wasn’t even aware of, or maybe I just glance over it while reading about wines in the periodicals either from the post or on-line. Vice Versa Wine Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2015 was excellent. I wish all Cabernet Sauvignon wines could taste this good. Vice Versa Wine makes use of several different vineyards and this wine is their base wine and is a blend of fruits from Oakville, Saint Helena, Pritchard Hill and Napa Valley. There were only 250 cases of this wine produced, which is a shame, as most people will never get a chance to try it, and I guess that I was just lucky. Needless to say, I was all primed for the actual tasting event.

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