An “Orange” Wine That I Had Forgot About

Posted on December 16, 2014 by thewineraconteur

Thankfully I have saved a lot of items over the years, I don’t think that I am a hoarder, but there are items that I have forgotten about and then I remember the moment. I was going through a folder, to see if I did not need anything that was there. There were two pamphlets and a short note from “The Rioja Wine Information Bureau” in New York, and when I went online I could not find that they are still there, but there is a website from Spain handling the information. A wine buyer had given me this information when I was in high school and I wrote to them. One of the pamphlets was “Tempting Spanish Recipes to be enjoyed with the Wines of Rioja” and the other was “Discovering the Wines of Rioja.” For a couple of years I enjoyed a lot of Rioja wines, especially since they were a fourth of the price of a Claret, back then, and as a student I was not rolling in money, that part is still true.

Reserva 904 La Rioja Alta 1959

As I was rereading this little pamphlet, one thing I noticed right away, that is so different from today’s publications; there was not a single mention of varietals, and all the emphasis was on the wine region and the type of wines offered. Today it seems that the varietal is at the forefront, as compared to the easy going days of the Sixties and Seventies about wine. They mentioned the different wines from the district, a Rose, a Rioja, a Rioja Clarete, and a Reserva, They also talked about the how the Rioja vintners formed an association back in 1560 to regulate and guarantee the quality and origin of their wines. To this day, there is a little emblem that looks like a small postage stamp on the labels of Rioja wines. The only thing I was surprised that wasn’t mentioned in the pamphlet was the curious “chicken-wire” mesh wrap around a lot of the bottles. Originally this was a way to prevent unscrupulous people from tampering with the wines, and now it is continued more as a trademark and perhaps a marketing tool.

Rioja Clarete La Rioja Alta 1966

When I red about the different wines, I remembered there being a Rose wine that is made from red grape varietals, but I never tried one, because back in the day I was not into lighter or anything that I thought would be sweet. The Rioja Clarete listing threw me for a loop, and I had to go back to my wine labels to see if I had ever had one, and there it was, I had tried one. I had bought two bottles produced by La Rioja Alta, S.A. a winery that was founded in 1890 in Haro and they are still in existence, still producing wines. I had a bottle of Rioja Clarete 1966, and it was an orange colored wine, and after some research I discovered that it is made from red and white grapes, namely Garnacha and Viura. While the Rose (Rosado) wines even though they are made from red grapes are made like a white wine, the Clarete is made like a red wine, even though it has white wine grapes. After I looked at the label, I remembered that I was not impressed with the wine, so I never had another, but I am sure that it was my youth and inexperience that caused that decision, and I hope that one day I shall try the wine again.

Discovering the Wines of Rioja

The other wine that I had from the same producer was a Reserva 904 1959, and the two wines were probably bought at the same time or at least within the same year. For years vintages were not a big deal in Rioja, and their finest wines were always considered for long cellaring time. The “904” actually refers to 1904, which was a stellar vintage year for the Rioja district in general, and a big business year for the firm, and they have been labeling the wine Reserva 904 for years, the only change is that now it reads Gran Reserva 904. This wine is historically made from the two varietals Tempranillo and Graciano, and I am sure that it is the case for the wine that I had. Looking back, for all the Rioja wines that I have enjoyed, there are only a few Gran Reserva wines that I have had.

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My Latest Shipment from A Taste of Monterey

Posted on December 14, 2014 by thewineraconteur

I just received my latest wine club shipment and it is like an early Christmas present, except that it is not really a gift from them. I am always like a little kid though, when the carton arrives as I cannot wait to open up the package and see what new treasures are enclosed. The wines are limited by this club to products from the Monterey area, and then we belong to the “private reserve club” which entails three better wines each shipment, my thinking when we signed up, was it was better to get some wines that I may not be able to find here in Michigan, because the more popular price wines may be produced in larger volumes and they may actually find their way here through the normal channels of distributing.

Galante Ace High Malbec 2010

The first wine is from Galante Vineyards of Carmel Valley. Galante “Ace High” Malbec 2010 and I have already written about and am a fan of this wine from the 2009 vintage, so I am a happy camper. In this newsletter there was a little history of Jack Galante and it states that his great-grandfather was the founder of the town of Carmel, and built the Pine Inn and the Highlands Inn. The family started a cattle ranch in the valley in 1969, and started planting Cabernet Sauvignon in 1983. There were 214 cases of this wine produced and the estimated aging potential is for eight to nine years. I am sure that it will not stay in my cellar that long.

Silvestri Bella Sandra Chardonnay 2011

The next wine is from a new producer to me. Silvestri Vineyards “Bella Sandra” Chardonnay 2011 is also from Carmel Valley. The fruit is pressed and put into stainless steel tanks, then is racked to French Oak for primary fermentation. After the primary fermentation the wine is inoculated to begin the malolactic fermentation, which produces a buttery, creamy character. The wine is stirred approximately every ten days for several months, then barrel aged for about ten months. The “Bella Sandra” Chardonnay is all fruit from a specific block in the vineyard that contains the Robert Young clone; it is barrel selected and fermented in half new and half in one year old French oak barrels. This is one of the largest productions of wines that I have received, as there was 1,310 cases produced of this wine, and even with this large production the estimated aging potential for this Chardonnay is five to seven years.

Cima Collina Reserve Pinot Noir 2007

The third bottle is one that I may have to tempt my Brother-in-Law with as it is a Pinot Noir from the Santa Lucia Highlands. The Cima Collina Private Reserve Pinot Noir 2007 is from a very new winemaker as there first harvest was in 2005. The harvesting was done by hand and aged in French oak, 40% new, for eleven months. The wine is unfined and unfiltered, and the winery claims that it will benefit from bottle aging and decanting to aerate the wine. One of the things I found interesting about the winery, is that their tasting room was once the post office for Carmel Valley. There were 233 cases of this wine produced, and the estimated aging potential for this wine is six to ten years. I think I have another winner here.

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My Introduction to Les Amis du Vin

Posted on December 12, 2014 by thewineraconteur

This article could have just as well been written for the Monthly Wine Writing Challenge for the topic “serendipity.” I did mention the organization Les Amis du Vin in that article as well as the article that I linked to it for a wine tasting evening with Harry Waugh. Les Amis du Vin means The Friends of Wine, and while I am no Francophile, nor can I speak the French language, I can translate that phrase. While I was in college, I was working my way through, one of the high school part-timers that I was training for the store told me about his girl friend’s Father who really enjoyed wine. I tend to hear that quite a bit, and I tend to take remarks like that with a grain of salt, of course he really was into wines. He was the state director for Les Amis du Vin and he had the finest wine cellar, I had ever seen amassed at that point in my life.

Ch Ausone 1957

He gave me information and an application for joining the society, but at that time, it was an expense that I thought I could forgo, as I had other fixed expenses that were necessities, and even though I thought of wine as a necessity, I could live without the society. The society offered a magazine that was published bi-monthly. They also offered a wine of the month, with no obligation to purchase. There were also wine tastings to encounter, and they even had travel excursions at times to places like France, Italy, Spain and Portugal. These were all a little heady for me at the time and perhaps still too heady as I am thinking of retirement.

Les Amis du Vin Application

One of the grand moments of meeting this gentlemen, was that he invited me to his home to have a bottle of wine, so that we could talk and get to know each other. He told me that he had a bottle of wine that he wanted to check how it was doing, as he still had another case of the wine resting. He was very nonchalant about the wine, but when I saw it, I was not, even at that point in my wine knowledge; I knew a classic when I saw it. We were sharing a bottle of Chateau Ausone 1957 from Saint-Emilion. Even today there are only four wines that are considered Premier Grand Cru Classe and they are Chateau Ausone, Chateau Angelus, Chateau Cheval Blanc and Chateau Pavie, of which I have had all save Chateau Pavie. I do enjoy the wines from this district and I still think that they are a bargain for the most part as compared to the Medoc. Chateau Ausone is a rather small vineyard and it is planted half and half with Cabernet Franc and Merlot. The other unique aspect of this famed vineyard, because of its size, is that the harvest can be done at the most optimum point in time, because the fruit can be harvested in two afternoons. The gentleman was very happy with tasting of the wine that evening and he did allow me to leave with the empty bottle, and he knew that he had still plenty of time to enjoy the wines that were still in storage.

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The Money Tree

Posted on December 10, 2014 by thewineraconteur

I recently got into a conversation about the old days of downtown Detroit, and I am sure that it will not surprise my regular readers that eventually the topic of restaurants came up. We started to mention some of the restaurants that were on the top of everyone’s list back in the day, but they have not survived, which is a shame. One of the restaurants that came up, and it wasn’t by me, but I do remember dining there once was The Money Tree. The name was catchy, and it was on the main floor adjacent to a bank, in what was then known as the financial district of downtown, whether the district is still called that, I can not say, but back then it was a lively area. It was an era when business attire was still expected in the better restaurants, and that I do recall. It was a very modern and airy restaurant, quite different in appearance from most of the fine eateries of the day. There was a flautist and a guitarist furnishing background music the night I was there.

Ch Pape Clement 1970

The restaurant was very continental in its approach to dining, which to me means French cuisine. I remember wanting to try the escargots, but I went with a plate of assortment of pate instead. I really was not sure what I was eating, but I enjoyed it, especially the chicken liver, which I could identify, after all I was still a youth and just discovering what food could be. One of the specialties of the house was Braised Veal Sweetbreads in Madeira wine, but I was not that brave, and to be truthful, I still am not that brave. Everyone assures me that it is a wonderful entrée to enjoy, but it is just too far off the beaten track for me, even though I love Foie Gras, so go figure, and I have also enjoyed liver and kidney dishes, but the pancreas somehow is beyond my comfort level. Of course I did find a dish that I could enjoy, and it was a duck dish. The duck dish was different all the time, or at least that is how I recall it being stated on the menu, it was the Chef’s call each night, and since I only ate there once, I cannot state it as gospel. I just recall that I had the duck, prepared very well, and much to my happiness it was not a sweet dish that evening, which would have made me look for another dish. I guess I am still quirky about food, but a bit more open to trying something different at times.

MI The Money Tree Logo

That evening I guess I splurged a bit for the wine, but it was not that expensive for what it would be today, especially with today’s markups in the restaurant business. I had a bottle of Chateau Pape Clement 1970, a Grand Cru wine of Graves. It is the oldest winery in Bordeaux and its name is from the owner who was originally the Arch-Bishop of Bordeaux and later became the Pope, and I believe the same Pope, who created the new estate near Avignone which is known as Chateauneuf du Pape. This wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, but they are also know for a white wine, and have in later years created secondary wines, to maintain the Grand Cru wine as something extraordinary.

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The Eighteenth, No the Twentieth

Posted on December 8, 2014 by thewineraconteur

It is that time of year again; by Thanksgiving the Christmas Cards (with the annual newsletter) and all Christmas gift packages that have to be shipped are shipped, all the presents have been bought, wrapped and bundled by family. The Christmas decorations in the thirty or so boxes are brought up from the basement, and the house is decorated for the season, and did I mention that the thirty some odd boxes have to be taken back into the basement, the same day. Why the rush? The first Friday in December is my Bride’s Annual Ladies Christmas Party, a party tradition that the she took over from one of her girlfriends that had to move to another state for business. The amusing part of this year’s invitation was that it was called the Eighteenth Annual and upon retrospect, it was the Twentieth Annual party, which is a faux pas that I would have made, because it is a number, and it is usually I that make the numerical errors.

14 Hands Hot to Trot Red 2012

The ladies are all invited and then there is the coordination of the “pot-luck” foods that they bring to the affair. Once again our island in the kitchen and several of the tables are covered with different dishes and they all go and make their plates. There are appetizers, salads, sides, chicken and shrimp plates, and of course Deviled Eggs, that are almost a required dish. The reason I know about all the food there, is that I tend to make an entrance after the party has begun, and I go through and greet all the guests, make a plate and high-tail it to my office, far from the maddening crowd. It is better; that I make myself scarce during the activities of the party, and all the ladies can relax and be themselves.

Green Fin Red Table Wine 2012

I did make a couple quick trips back and forth to have a glass or two of wine, to see what the ladies were imbibing that evening. I ignored our house wines, as I know what they are, and I have written about them for different functions through the year. I tried two different red wines that evening. The first was Green Fin Red Table Wine 2012, with a California designation, by Green Fin Winery of Madera, California. This winery is from Bronco Wine Company, also makers of Franzia wines, one of the big bulk producers of wine that seem to be available everywhere, while the Green Fin wine appears to be for Trader Joe’s. The big focal point of this wine, which has no varietals listed, is that it is bio-dynamic, organic and vegan friendly, which are all the new buzz words for “foodies” these days, but the wine was not all that exciting for me. The other wine that I tried was from 14 Hands Winery of Columbia Valley, Washington and I have tried their Cabernet Sauvignon at another time. This evening though, I was trying 14 Hands “Hot to Trot” Red Blend 2012. This is a red wine that is a blend of Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and other select red varietals (what ever that means). This wine also enjoyed nine months in French and American barrels and there was some taste and value there, and I found it more fruit forward as most of the popular priced wines seem to be producing these days. All in all, I know that the ladies had a grand time, and wine was secondary or even tertiary for the night.

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MWWC: Serendipity Redux

Posted on December 6, 2014 by thewineraconteur

Horace Walpole coined the word “serendipity” back in 1754 and it means fortunate happenstance or a pleasant surprise, and this is the theme of this month’s Monthly Wine Writers Challenge. I have added the word “redux” onto my title, which means revived or brought back; and I feel that I have been blessed many times with serendipity when it comes to wines, and I will point out a few of the tales this raconteur has enjoyed, as I am sure that most of you have not read some of my earlier forays.

wine-stain Monthly Wine Challenge

I had just recently wrote an article called Serendipity, where I was called in to help a wedding party that was having trouble with the art of making a proper knot for the bow ties. It only took a few minutes of my time, and it meant the world to the men, especially the intended groom. I ended up with a bottle of Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon 2010, a delightful bottle of wine, and the largesse of the Uncle of the Bride surprised me to no end. I saw some of the family members after the wedding, and they were so happy to bring up the occasion, because it was all recorded by a videographer. A week or two later, I saw the Uncle, and I thanked him again, and he asked me if I knew a couple of men, and I said yes, and discussed how it was through their family that I was introduced to the Duckhorn wines. He then showed me an email on his phone from one of the men, and they were getting together in China, and one of the other men that he was going to meet was of the Duckhorn family. That made me smile, and I told him all about how I did a tasting of Duckhorn wines in the back of a semi-trailer and was turned on to their wines and especially to their Howell Mountain Vineyard.

Also through serendipity, I ended up meeting a gentleman that was with “Les Amis du Vin,” a wine society and was invited to a talk and wine tasting with the celebrated man of wines, Mr. Harry Waugh; and what a wonderful night of French Burgundies it was. For a young kid to get to listen to the stories of the great wines, and a chance to have some wines like Vosne-Romanee and Echezeaux was a tremendous experience. While I am thinking of the wonderful red wines of Burgundy, I remember another fortunate happenstance, when I was enjoying a glass of Chevas Regal, during my college years when I was “Just Plain Lucky” and not in the way, that it can be construed in today’s parlance. There are just not that many men, let alone a young kid that gets the chance to enjoy a bottle of Richebourg 1921.

It is because of wine, that I have also had a chance to dine at some great restaurants both locally and around this great country. When I get to my deathbed, which I hope is still ages away, I think that I can safely say, that I may never have a finer meal than at The French Laundry, and I recorded the menu for that evening and a wonderful wine, that I may never have tried, except for the sage advice of the Sommelier. Of course I have also dined at Daniel in Manhattan and what a great menu and wine we had that evening, as well. I also went to Bistro Boulud at the Wynne hotel in Las Vegas and had the Hamburger of all times. If one wants to talk about a pleasant surprise in a restaurant, then “My Favorite Story” needs to be repeated, and I think I wrote about that evening in two different versions, because how often does one get to enjoy the cult wine of all cult wines Screaming Eagle?

Most of my tales as a raconteur center on dining, because I think one cannot dine properly with out wine. My Father’s generation always referred to a night out on the town as “Wining and Dining” and who am I to change that concept. You want to talk about serendipity, my Sister-in-Law was born in 1961, and that is considered one of the top three vintages of the last century, and according to her husband, that is the finest vintage. For her fortieth birthday, he had “A Celebration of the Women and Wine of 1961” and the menu alone that was created for that evening was wonderful, but when you add Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Chateau Margaux, Chateau Latour and Chateau d’Yquem, and all of the 1961 vintage, it was a most memorable night and even a learning moment for all the dining guests as well.

Chateau Latour Pauillac 1961

I have saved what I consider the greatest moment of serendipity in my life for the last, and to be totally frank, there is no wine in the story, but it may be my all time favorite story and it covers our theme perfectly, so I do hope some of you humor me, and look at some of my early writings, but none of them do it more for me than “How My Bride became “My Bride” and a Great Cup of Coffee.”

19 years ago

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Leftovers

Posted on December 4, 2014 by thewineraconteur

Thanksgiving dinner was a monumental dinner, just because of the crowd we had this year, and the food preparation was awesome as well. I must say that my Bride should receive all the accolades that were bestowed upon her that night, as she deserved them. One of the reasons that she made such a vast amount of food was that most of the people that were there on Thanksgiving were also invited to come back on Saturday night for leftovers and another night of merriment.

Aiena Pinot Noir McIntyre Vineyard 2008

There was still plenty of the standing rib roast for the carnivores to enjoy, and there was none left by the end of the evening, which goes to show you that a great cut of meat can be wonderful a second time around. As for the turkey, my Bride did get creative and made two huge pot pies using the left over turkey, made a roux and added vegetables. She had gotten this recipe from her sister, and she changed it a little to make it her own. Another hit for the evening as both pies disappeared as well. Speaking of pies, all of the desserts that were still left went and she also had to make another Caramel Apple Pie as it had been requested, and that disappeared as well. Her planning paid off, as she made all that work satisfy a crowd of people on two different evenings.

Meiomi Pinot Noir 2013

As for the wines, there were plenty of Chardonnay wines enjoyed earlier, and then during dinner there were a couple of Pinot Noir wines to enjoy. The first wine that was opened was some more of the Meiomi Pinot Noir 2013, that my Bride had discovered at a wine tasting and had bought some, and this discovery was seconded by her Sister and Brother-in-Law that live in Kentucky, as they had brought some of the wine up as well. This wine is from the Wagner Family of Wines, from their Belle Glos Collection. The word “Meiomi” is a tribal California Indian term for “coast” and it is fitting as the fruit is sourced from three coastal wine counties; Monterey, Sonoma and Santa Barbara. The other Pinot Noir wine that we enjoyed that evening, I brought up from the cellar. We had enjoyed an Aiena Pinot Noir 2009 once where the fruit was sourced from two different vineyards. I opened up a bottle of Aiena Pinot Noir 2008, which was from the Santa Lucia Highlands, but all the fruit was from the McIntyre Vineyard, the sad part is that there were only 270 cases made of this wine, so I am sure that we will never find this exact wine again. We were all amazed by the beauty of this wine. The fruit, terroir and tannins were all balanced and in harmony, and the nose was wonderful and we were just all enthralled with it. The Aiena may have been over kill for leftovers, but it truly added to the evening.

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A Christmas Party

Posted on December 2, 2014 by thewineraconteur

I already went to my first Christmas party and it was at a restaurant that I have written about before called Baldo’s. There was about twenty people invited to the dinner, though a few more were invited that could not attend. Baldo’s is located in the downriver community of Brownstown, a suburb of Detroit. This was during the Thanksgiving weekend, and the restaurant was packed, and showing no signs of slowing down, the entire time we were there. A white tablecloth place that offers a bang for the buck, more of big bowl pasta place, then Nouveau Cuisine and from the attitude of the regulars, this is what they are looking for. There were not any pretensions or fancy presentations, but good solid value.

Leese Fitch Cabernet Sauvignon 2012

Our host that evening took the liberty of ordering several different appetizer plates in multiples to get the festivities going. There were mussels in a Palomino Sauce, Antipasto trays of Charcuterie and cheeses, and vegetable plates. We were then instructed by our host to just order off of the menu, anything that appealed to us. There were rib eye steaks, salmon and assorted pasta dishes that were ordered by the guests. I opted for Shrimp Diavolo, a spicy Creole inspired pasta dish with added scallions. All the dishes came with either a choice of salads and or soups, or some house made bread fresh from the oven. I could not finish my dish, after all of the appetizers, and I only had a taste of a Tiramisu for dessert.

MI Baldo's Menu

The wine that evening was from a company called The Other Guys, which it turned out was Mia and August Sebastiani and this was a part of the much larger Don Sebastiani Family of Companies. We were enjoying bottles of Leese-Fitch Cabernet Sauvignon 2012, which was celebrating the restoration of the Leese-Fitch building in the Sonoma Square. Messer Leese and Fitch were the Brother-in-Laws of Mariano Vallejo, the founder of the town of Sonoma. The wine itself said Cabernet Sauvignon, but it was also blended with Petit Verdot, Alicante Bouschet, Tannat, Merlot and Barbera. The wine was listed as a California wine, because the fruit was harvested from the following appellations: Lodi, Clarksburg, Paso Robles, Northern Interior Valley and Sonoma County. For a popular price wine it did offer some taste and like the restaurant was value for the money.

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Another Thanksgiving and a Surprise Ending

Posted on November 30, 2014 by thewineraconteur

I think we had the biggest Thanksgiving dinner ever, and no we do not do a Norman Rockwell type of dinner. We had tables everywhere this time. There were tables and diners in the dining room, the living room, the library, the breakfast nook and the family room. We were running out of space. First appetizers were spread out in different zones. The island in the kitchen was a large smorgasbord for dinner, and we had to set up the plates and utensils in the library, as there was no place on the island for them.

Chateau Margaux 1970

Earlier in the day before the guests arrived we had two roasters and an auxiliary refrigerator in the library, and that did not work out, as we blew a fuse. So we had to put one roaster in the kitchen and one stayed in the library. The oven and the range were also put to major use as well. I have to admit, that my Bride makes the best turkey and stuffing that I have ever had, and as I have stated in the past, I never enjoyed turkey, until I had hers. Her sister came up with a special dish that we cooked that morning as well, she had prepped a whole standing rib roast, and I am so glad that her butcher cradled the meat on the ribs and tied it together. I was not aware that it had been cradled and I was on the computer reading up on how to carve this roast, the hardest part was already prepped. May I say that this dish rivaled my Bride’s turkey and she was watching which dish was more popular as people filled their plates with all of the different foods that were laid out on the island. Suffice it to say that there were plenty of other dishes as well, and nobody was left out or hungry afterwards. After everyone was sated, the island was cleared of all the foods, and the island became a dessert table, and of course all of the November birthday people were sung to, before the desserts was doled out.

Beaulieu Vineyard Georges De Latour 2004

My Brother-in-Law with the great cellar brought up a bottle for us to enjoy, and he only looked at the label. After he put it on the table and we uncorked it, did he realize that it was a special commemorative painted back label, and that he must have gotten it at a charity event. I guess this bottle will not have the label soaked off, but will be kept intact on a shelf that I have in the cellar for special bottles. The wine was Beaulieu Vineyard George De Latour Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2004. This is probably the original and most meaningful “Private Reserve” in Napa Valley, in fact perhaps in the country. George De Latour was the original founder of Beaulieu Vineyard and the fruit harvested for this wine is from the original Rutherford site. This is not a bulk production wine at all, and the terroir was even more noticeable in this vintage, than compared to other bottles of this wine that I have had in the past. The back of the bottle had a painted label for the Primetime Emmy Awards “60” and I did some research and this event was in 2008, so these bottles must have been served at a very special party, as I can not imagine that this would have been offered to people who “swill” wine or any other alcoholic beverage that they can get their hands on.

BV GDL CS 2004 Emmy 60

The gauntlet had been thrust, and I decided to go into the cellar and find something to create a possible “awe” moment of my own. I went into the Bordeaux wine area of my rack and I thought, yes this will work. I brought it up, and handed it to him, and he recognized the label, but he had to put his glasses on to read the vintage. He smiled, and he asked me if I knew the history of this bottle, and I replied to the affirmative, as I had splurged and bought this bottle when it first came to the market and I have had it cellared ever since. We looked at the lead capsule that surrounded the cork and it looked rather “grungy” if I may say so. We then looked at the ullage of the bottle, and it looked as if there had been no seepage of air or liquid, as the bottle looked “store bought full.” I attempted to get a cork screw in the cork, but it was quite soft, and my Brother-in-Law used one of my spring steel cork screw, but alas the cork pushed right into the bottle. I went and got my always ready funnel, a coffee filter and a decanter. This wine was going to be tested and tried. The make shift filtration system allowed the wine to be fully decanted, and we were even admiring the color of the wine, and not to mention that there was no foxiness or oxidation smell to the nose. All good signs and I almost forgot to take a picture of the wine in the decanter, to show the rich color. We rinsed our glasses from the delightful cab to try this new bottle of a Cabernet blend. The wine that we decanted was Chateau Margaux 1970, one of the Premier Grand Cru of the Medoc, and a famed wine. My Brother-in-Law mentioned that this is not a wine that is known for a long life, like Chateau Latour, but he said the best of the French wines are always full of surprises. He and his wife, my Bride and myself all tried the wine, and remarked that most of the fruit was gone, but the tannins were still solid, and the terroir was still noticeable, but it may have been the most mellow Bordeaux wine that we have ever had, not feisty, but still totally intact. Only my Bride did not want to finish her glass and gave it to me, as she likes her wines, especially Cabs and blends to be big and in your face, and this wine was, I felt, sensual and demure. The rest of us could not get over the quality and life of this wine.

Decanter of Ch Margaux 1970

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A Circuitous Chardonnay

Posted on November 28, 2014 by thewineraconteur

While we were having our dinner at the Ravens Club in Ann Arbor with my fellow Wine Blogger Oliver and his charming wife Nina we were witnessing a bottle of wine take a very unique trip. Of course with the four of us, wine is always a topic of discussion. Oliver was lamenting that he was not writing as much as he would like, and we discussed some of the writings of some of the other Bloggers as well, since Oliver has had the fortune to actually know several of them in person. I on the other hand only know them through their writings or from Social Media, but I feel a bond with those that I have encountered this way. Wine is a social event and not a solitary endeavor, and given the time we can all be rather gregarious in espousing the virtues of the fermented grape.

Oliver and John 2014

There was a couple that was having dinner at another table behind my Bride and Nina and they had a bottle of wine between them. There was another couple at the table adjacent to us that were also having dinner, and as one thing led to another, we ended up discussing wines and our passion for the wines and also of our writing about wines; as I said, we tend to be a friendly group of people. The first couple finished their meal and only had a glass or two from the bottle, and even though Michigan now allows you to leave with a partial bottle of wine after your dinner, they took the bottle over to the couple next to us and wanted them to enjoy the wine. This couple graciously accepted the gift, though they stated that they were really red wine drinkers. They tried some of the wine and continued on with their discussion and occasionally our table had some asides with them again. We had finished our dinner and were going to get ready to leave; when the second couple brought over the bottle and thought they we might enjoy the balance of them wine.

Roco Chardonnay 2012

I have to admit, that there is seldom a time when wine afficianados would turn down a chance to try a new wine. The wine was a Chardonnay, and there are some people who claim to be ABC (Anything But Chardonnay) drinkers. Now Oliver is a big fan of German Riesling wines, but he does venture off to try other wines as well, as he is a member of the Century Club, and one day, I may get off of my inertia and actually fill out the form as well to see how I fare. Now for Chardonnay wines, I tend to lump them into two large groups. The first group is how this varietal works in the French region of Burgundy, a very crisp and bright wine with a lot of nuance when done properly and there are legions of fans for this type of wine. The other group of Chardonnay, if I may pigeon-hole them is for the big California style oakey wines, that may be very buttery and mellow, and this group has a loyal following as well, though I have noticed in some of the contemporary writings that some people are belaboring the fact of too much oak these days. I did not get a chance to discuss this particular wine with the first couple, as we were originally out of the original equation and perhaps they were looking for more of a buttery Chardonnay, as this wine was made more in the French style. The second couple tried some of the wine, but alas they just were not into white wines as much as they enjoyed red wines. So when the wine ended up at our table, we had to call for some fresh wine glasses to try this new wine.

MI The Ravens Club BC

The wine that was passed around to three tables was Roco Chardonnay 2012 from Roco Winery of Oregon. The fruit came from the Rose Rock West Vineyards in the Eola-Amity Hills AVA which is a newer and sub-appellation of the much larger Willamette Valley designation. This was a very well crafted wine that is in an elevated area and not on the base of the valley, and the terroir of this district enabled them to get their own designation.  As I stated this was a well crafted wine and there were only 250 cases produced, so it was good that we could have a chance to try it, as it was not offered by the glass in the restaurant.  It was a very nice way to end the evening with this surprising gift of wine and our table did enjoy it, and yes the wine bottle became as I tend to call them a “dead soldier,” and I took the bottle with us a memory and another label for me to remove to add to my collection.

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