Having Ms. Yoga for a Couple of Days

Posted on August 5, 2022 by thewineraconteur

After getting over the surprise retirement party, and as we were getting ready to pack up, which was unique, as normally we are the last to leave, as we are there to the end cleaning and straightening.  My Bride had all of her gifts to pack up in the car, not to mention, we had Ms. Yoga as well.  A total surprise for my Bride and they were talking almost to the time of party, sometimes we have to be sneaky.  My Bride had a lot going on with her family, that is still going on, and she couldn’t understand why a schedule that she and three of her sisters worked on, was being upended for the weekend.  I guess when she saw that Ms. Yoga was staying at Casa Raconteur, it dawned on her. 

Now Ms. Yoga, by rights should have been Castilian, as one would think that the concept of tapas was created by her.  She enjoys noshing and would rather have plenty of appetizers instead of one entrée.  I knew about it and I really couldn’t give my Bride a heads up about what foods should be forthcoming, before the “tiki” party; just like I couldn’t get the guest bedroom ready ahead of time.  I mean there would be no logical reason for me to put fresh linens on a bed, that isn’t being used, nor could I pull out a luggage stand and set it up in the room.  Though I could get a stock of Chardonnay wines chilling in the back refrigerator, without causing any eyebrows to go up.  One of the wines we had was Bernardus Winery Chardonnay Santa Lucia Highlands, Soberanes Vineyard 2019.  Bernardus Winery is one of our favorites from Monterey County and it was at their restaurant that I actually received a glass of Screaming Eagle for a special night and memory.  Bernardus Winery and Vineyards was founded by Ben Marinus Pon about twenty-seven years ago with the intention of creating premier wines in the Carmel Valley.  His intent was to produce single vineyard designated wines and a Bordeaux blended wine.  Soberanes Vineyard is a joint venture of two famed growers Gary Pisoni and Gary Franscioni in the Santa Lucia Highlands.  This wine is made in the “Burgundian tradition” and it is almost twelve months between harvest and bottling.  The wine is aged in French Oak, of which forty-three percent is new.  This pretty soft golden colored wine offered notes of baked apples with crème and spices.  On the palate layers of white fruits, buttery oak and a nice long finish. 

In the two nights that we had Ms. Yoga, we had a chance to enjoy several wines, I know that I was not surprised and several dishes of food, in an eclectic manner.  I know that you wouldn’t be surprised that I was regaling Ms. Yoga about the wines along with side stories.  One other wine that I will mention is made from a man that was originally from the Detroit area and still maintains ties to Detroit, especially philanthropically.  Another party that he still holds in Detroit is a big cigar night and through the course of years I have met several of the men that are part of this party, but my Bride is happy that I retired from that habit; not to mention that I always enjoyed a panatela with an English market wrapper and that size seems to have disappeared, which I guess is alright with me.  We did get to enjoy a Celani Family Vineyards Estate Chardonnay Napa Valley 2020 from the Oak Knoll District.  The Chardonnay was whole-cluster pressed and fermented on its lees using forty percent new French Oak and sixty percent in self-stirring egg-shaped concrete fermenters. To maintain the natural acidity of the Chardonnay, malolactic fermentation was inhibited.  The nose on this wine was excellent with notes of apple, pear, tropical flowers and brioche and some soft notes of spices and jasmine. The taste was a crisp balance of fruit and floral flavors with a very decent length finish of oak and roasted nuts.  Until the next return of Ms. Yoga.    

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Mission Impossible Worked

Posted on August 3, 2022 by thewineraconteur

Jim Phelps would have been impressed, especially when there were several times that I thought the cat had been let out of the bag. As I walked up along side of her with two bags of wine, I knew that she wasn’t absorbing the scenario.  As Nick Charles was thinking about the wine, I had to watch Nora as she was still in a daze.  She first saw a coworker and friend for decades, and because she wasn’t supposed to be at the pool party, even the “surprise!!” was taking time to absorb.  Then right behind her, was Ms. Yoga who came in from North Carolina, and then The Wine Raconteur, Jr. and his family followed.  After that, the family members that she expected, along with family members that she didn’t expect to see that day.  It was wonderful to observe.

 The first bottle of wine that I opened evaporated, and the second one of the same almost did as well.  I do think that the wine helped her get over the shock and then she was working the “room” in all of her glory.  She didn’t even think of noshes or nibbling, but she was laughing and just totally letting loose, as she really didn’t expect this.  I then opened up Black Star Farms Arcturos Sur Lie Chardonnay Michigan 2020.  There is no explanation of where the fruit was harvested, and it could actually be from two of their own vineyards which are located in different AVA designations, but it is not stated.  This is a non-oaked style wine, which I presume to mean that it is Stainless Steel.  The wine had a beautiful soft-gold color with lush floral notes.  On the palate tones of citrus, apple and pear in a medium bodied wine with a short finish with a subtle mineral tinge.

Finally, she was back to herself, and relaxing.  Even though she retired, she had been quite intense with other affairs, so this was a great day for her.  The amazing thing and the common theme of all three of her parties was that there was a taco station at each one and I had brought Margaritas, as the host had a frozen drink maker, and on a summer day, for those that needed it, a Frozen Margarita could really hit the spot, especially if you weren’t using the pool.  While I was doing beef, I am sure that my Bride was doing chicken in her tacos, and we were both enjoying the Guacamole, and all of the other stuff.  I didn’t know the menu, so the wine I brought for the main course was over kill, but what the hell. We were enjoying Blason D’Issan Margaux 2015 from Chateau D’Issan, one of the Third Growths from the legendary Classification of the Medoc in 1855.  Blason is a French word for “coat of arms” and I guess that is a nice way for them to list their second label.  Chateau D’Issan is from the commune of Margaux and it is one of the districts that I totally enjoy, encountered the most and probably drank the most or it may be tied with Pauillac.  The Chateaux is rather legendary and has been recorded in history as the wine served in 1152 at the marriage between Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II of England. The best word in my mind to describe the great wines of Margaux is silky, I know it is a rather ethereal word, but it just seems like the perfect word when describing certain beverages.  The major difference between the first and second label, since all the fruit is from the same estate, is that the fruit harvest for Blason is from the younger vines, and since they started making this wine in 1995, as an alternative wine that is more fruit forward and drinkable much earlier.  One hears of some of the leading Margaux wines still being in their prime from the earliest years of the last century.  This wine is sixty percent Cabernet Sauvignon and the balance is Merlot.  The Blason is aged for fourteen to sixteen months in oak, of which a third is new, the blending and the aging is slightly different compared to the first label.  She fell in love with this wine from the first sip, so she made sure that we had a six-pack before we left that tasting.  The party was a success, and all the while as I drove home, Nora Charles was upset that she had missed some of the obvious blunders and some of the minor ones as well from people concerning this party. 

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We Pulled It Off

Posted on August 1, 2022 by thewineraconteur

My Bride had retired and was honored at her work and by her client, but she thought that there should have been a party among the family.  There was a lot going on that whole last month along with some problems that were not foreseeable, So, she left her party, more on the back burner.  She can be a take-charge individual, and there were plans afoot, that I had to try at my end to keep her from deciding on doing something herself.  Originally, there was going to be a Tiki pool party for all the July birthday celebrants, and then one celebrant, didn’t want to be part of the big group, and then the Louisville family was coming up, for an airshow at Selfridge Airforce Base, so we had a time schedule, so she knew that we couldn’t get to the house for the party until two in the afternoon, otherwise she would have wanted to get to the party at eleven or so in the morning to help with the food preparation and cleaning and what have you. 

The day arrived and my Bride was tired, and since she was only going to a pool party, she didn’t want to do her makeup or get all dressed up, though I told her that she could use a little color.  She wanted me to drive, normally she drives as she is always in a hurry, and I have told her repeatedly that she must relax and start calming down.  As we were driving to the pool party, we got a call asking if we could pick up a bag of ice, and of course I was trying to make every red light on the way, and she was getting upset with my driving and the traffic.  When I got to the street, I saw that there was a lot of cars parked up ahead and I saw a tent up on a front yard, so I parked several car lengths away and we unpacked the car.  She wanted to know why I brought so much wine this time, and I told her, that the last time, she made go light and I was embarrassed, because I had a thirst still.  As we started to get on the sidewalk to walk to our destination, she was a bit flustered as we had to get back on the street, because someone was power washing their motorized tricycle.  She didn’t even look up, as she has a tendency to look down at her feet, because of some prior tripping accidents. 

“Surprise!!!!”  I immediately went and opened up a bottle of wine and got a couple of glasses.  I knew that she would want a drink, and I figured that she would be totally mad at me for not wanting her to get all dressed up, when she thought, she was going to a pool party.  It didn’t even dawn on her at first, that the party was in her honor.  She got teary eyed and couldn’t immediately focus and she saw a couple of faces that didn’t belong at the family get-together.  I gave her a glass of Gazela Vinho Verde DOC Minho 2019 from Portugal and owned by Sogrape Vinhos; as this has become one of her go-to wines at the house.  Sogrape Vinhos began in the wartime environment of World War Two and was started in 1942 by a group of friends and the vision of one man to promote Portugal into an international wine making country.  Fernando van Zeller Guedes led the group and the first global brand that they developed was Mateus Rosé which is now sold in over one-hundred-twenty countries and was a total success.  They began as a negocient buying barrels of wine from small producers in the Douro and bottling in a rented facility.  Through wise investments and careful development, they now own over eight-hundred-thirty hectares of vineyards in all the key Portuguese wine regions. In 1982, they acquired Solar and Quinta de Azevedo in the Vinho Verde region and created their brand of Gazela in 1984. Vinho Verde DOC in the Minho region is famous for their straw-colored light, tangy youthful wine, in fact the wine is so youthful, that is how it got the Vinho Verde name, which means “green wine” and it is also used for the small amount of red (tinto) wine from the district as well. The wine is so “green” that there is a natural petulance or effervescent finish, not enough to be considered a sparkling wine, but distinct from a still wine.  This wine is pure Loureiro for a varietal, which is a light skinned grape famed in Minho, it tends to be blended with Albarino, which is thought to be a relative, but the jury is still out.  There are references to Loureiro going back the late 18th Century in Minho of this grape.  The party was a success and more to come, and she didn’t kill me.  

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Dinner with The Caller

Posted on July 30, 2022 by thewineraconteur

I have to say, that The Caller did an admirable job navigating the pontoon boat on the lake.  The lake that they are on, is a private lake, and I don’t quite understand it totally, but it is like a cooperative and every house on the lake contributes to the health of the lake.  It is a “no wake” lake, so no speedboats, just row boats, canoes, kayaks, small fishing boats and pontoons.  The second bottle of wine, basically lasted for the cruise.  Then we tied up and went back ashore to have dinner.

The Caller’s wife was all excited and made a Creole dish, that she learned how to make, while they were on holidays in New Orleans.  My Bride signed up for a cooking class on one of our trips there, and that may have been an impetus for them.  They had a diploma; my Bride bought an apron from the school that spends most of the time hanging up and displayed on a coat rack in the library. Continuing with the theme of the day, for dinner I opened up a bottle of Korbin Kameron Merlot Estate Grown Moon Mountain District 2015. The Moon Mountain AVA is a very new subregion of the Sonoma Valley, as it was only awarded status in 2013.  The wines were all aged for eighteen months in French Oak, of which half was new.  Production of the wine was three-hundred cases and easily ten plus years of cellaring would be wonderful, but I opened this one a bit early and it was strong.  I am and have always been partial to Merlot wines since my teens, and these were some of the best Merlot wines that I have had with a nose of red fruits and spice, with a taste of lush cherries and a charming silky tannin finish. 

The evening was coming towards the end and out came coffee and freshly filled Sicilian Canolis.  But we couldn’t finish without a dessert wine and I opened up a bottle of Korbin Kameron Late Harvest “Sweet Isla” Moon Mountain District 2018.  We were actually having such a great time, that I forgot to take a photo of the wine, but I had a couple of back up stock photos in my files.  The wine is late harvested Sauvignon Blanc with an addition of fifteen percent Botrytised Semillon. One-week cold soak and fermented on the skins for an additional two weeks to pick up extra color and flavors, called phenolics, which was a really long and cool fermentation for intense aromatics. The wine was aged for eight months in neutral oak. A beautiful wine that was just magnificent and reminded me of a French Sauternes with a nose of honeysuckle, a silky texture offering notes of sweet lemons, apricots and marmalade with a nice long count in the finish. After we said good byes, and reminded ourselves that this was the first real function as retirees.  Thankfully, we remembered how we got to their street, because we had to drive like in the old days for about a half-mile, before the GPS kicked in.  

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An Afternoon with The Caller

Posted on July 28, 2022 by thewineraconteur

Way back, before my Bride had retired, in fact, way back, the last time we were with The Caller and his charming wife, we made arrangements to have dinner with them.  The hardest thing to get from them, is a free date, as they are always going hither and yon.  They are making the most of their retirements, as their weekends are always booked, but we worked out a day in the middle of the week, since by the next available date, we would both be retired as well. 

I mean you almost have to pack a lunch to get to their home, as they live out in the country on a private lake, because all the homes around this lake belong to one association, so you have to live there, to bring a boat unto the lake.  Our GPS on our phones got us about a half mile from their home and then it stopped functioning; like we had come to the end of civilization.  We made it and we started off in the dining area off of the kitchen with a cheese and munchies and all the good stuff.  They catered and we brought the libations.  We were going to treat them with a day of Korbin Kameron wines, that we just enjoy.  We started with a bottle of Korbin Kameron Sauvignon Blanc Estate Grown Moon Mountain District 2017. Korbin Kameron wines is the brand for Moonridge Vineyards located on Mount Veeder, a curious location which separates Napa County from Sonoma County and there nineteen acres can be found on both sides of the slope.  Mitchell Ming is the proprietor along with his wife, and the winery is named after his twin children and his other daughter has a vineyard named for her.  Moon Mountain District is a subregion of Sonoma County.  This wine had initial fermentation in Stainless Steel and then was aged for four months in oak, of which twenty percent was new, and three-hundred cases were made.  This wine had the classic nose of lemongrass and a touch of lime, while on the palate the classic taste of grapefruit and perhaps a touch of honeydew melon, with a nice dry finish; a different taste from either the Continent or Down Under.

Afterwards, we moved out to an enclosed terraced room to start with the second bottle of wine and some more munchies, but after opening the wine, we went out and down a small knoll to a wharf and boarded a pontoon boat for a leisurely trip around the lake for about an hour.  We were enjoying a bottle of Korbin Kameron Semillon Estate Grown Moon Mountain District 2018.  Semillon is probably one of the least known, major varietals in the wine industry.  It makes some of the greatest sweet wines and it also makes some of the greatest dry wines.  Its home is Bordeaux, though it is done extremely well in parts of Australia and among a few wineries in California.  A wine that starts in Stainless Steel and finishes in oak.  There was only one barrel made of this wine or twenty-five cases or three-hundred bottles, so I am glad that we got some, and I consider it a rare coup for us. This organically made wine used native yeasts and had a nose that I would call plush floral and citrus, and it brought notes of citrus and ripe pear with a nice lingering long count finish.  Needless to say, it was a great way to relax, while The Caller manned the helm with no fear of encountering an iceberg.

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Two I Am Sure My Bride Will Enjoy

Posted on July 26, 2022 by thewineraconteur

When I spend some time tasting wines at my local wine shop, The Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan, I am tasting wines that I think will be of interest to myself, as well as for this blog.  I am also looking for wines that I think will make my Bride happy, and I think they also realize that; and so far, I have only mis-judged her palate once, so I guess that is pretty good odds.  She will remind me that I am more open to different wines, while she is much more open to different cuisines, and that is a given.

The first wine was Jean-Claude Berrouet (Famille Berrouet) “Herri Mina” Blanc Irouleguy 2020.  This winery is the most south-western part of France, in the Basque country and adjacent to the Basque in Spain.  Jean-Claude Berrouet is an Irouleguy native, who left home and worked for three decades as a winemaker at Chateau Petrus.  He went back home and purchased a four-and-a-half-hectare property in 1992, and named the estate “Herri Mina” which in Basque; herri means country and mina means homesick.  The estate is on rather a steep slope on the Pyrenees, and is planted with Gros Manseng, Petit Corbu, Petit Manseng and a small plot of Cabernet Franc.  The region has been planted with vineyards for the last couple of thousand years.  There are about sixty growers within a hundred-hectares of vineyards.  The soil of the region is sandstone and limestone. There is a rosé wine made in the region, but it is basically just for local consumption.  This was a beautiful dry wine, that was probably produced in tanks.  The soft-straw colored wine had notes of tropical fruits, along with pears and green apples.  On the palate, a big full-bodied white wine with tones of mango and pears and tangy and bold acidity, that was very fresh and a good medium count finish of terroir.  I can’t wait for my Bride to try this wine that came home with me.

The other wine that I was excited about Roberts + Rogers Mendocino County Red Wine Blend NV.  Longtime friends Roger Louer and Robert Young decided in 1999 to create a “first-class” Cabernet Sauvignon wine brand with fruit from Howell Mountain from a vineyard jointly developed by the two men.  The first vintage was in 2004, and released in 2007 was for three-hundred cases.  The original and still current winemaker Barry Gnekow described the first vintage as “this wine is so big it will be coming into its own in about thirty years, but is drinkable now.” In 2009, Roger Louer produced the Louer Family Reserve Cabernet from his personal estate and sourced from the areas of his thirty-four-acre estate.  It was released for the first vintage under the Roberts + Rogers Winery label in 2012.  This is a very special proprietary wine that was blended by Roger Louer, Jim Lufty and Remy Lufty of The Fine Wine Source and Vertical Detroit.  The juice is a blend of two different years, hence the NV status and a blend of Petite Sirah, Zinfandel and Merlot.  A very pretty garnet color with notes of red fruit and spices.  On the palate a big fruit forward wine of black and red cherries, good tannins, well balanced with a finish of terroir.  My kind of red, and I am sure that my Bride will agree, and this was a very limited production of two-hundred-cases. 

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July 2022 Wine Club Selections

Posted on July 24, 2022 by thewineraconteur

I finally picked up my wine club selections from The Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan.  I can tell you that even though I have been retired, there is no moss on me, I always seem to be on the go, or doing a project, and now with my Bride retired, we will eventually have to develop a new rhythm.  I always look forward to the monthly selections, as I know that they have been curated by the owner of the shop and he has impeccable selections, as every wine in the shop has been personally selected by him, there are no mass-produced jug wines here.  And as always, there is one Old World selection and one from the New World.

The first wine was Eguren Ugarte Family Winery Crianza Rioja DOCa 2012, originally the winery was known as Heredad Ugarte and they have been making wine since 1870.  They are in the sixth generation of wine farmers in Laguardia, in the heart of Rioja Alavesa.  The winery has one-hundred-thirty hectares of vineyards and two-thousand meters of caves under the winery for aging.  The Rioja region is divided into three sub-regions; Rioja Alta, to the west, known for more traditional style wines; Rioja Alavesa which is at a lower elevation which can offer some richer flavors and sometimes in more modern winemaking techniques and Rioja Baja, which has the lowest elevation, the dries climate of the three and offering deeper color, intense flavors and a higher alcohol count. Many of the fine houses blend wines from the three sub-regions to take advantage of what the region can offer. This wine is a blend of ninety-two percent Tempranillo and eight percent Grenach.  The wine is fermented and aged for six months in American Oak barrels and then aged for another six months in bottles, before being released to the market.  The tasting notes offered is “red cherries, spices and herbs captures the aging with a slightly toasty aroma.  Soft tannins and an excellent aromatic aftertaste.”  I have had other wines in the past from this winery as it is easy for me to remember their name, because if you are a major “Casablanca” fan like me, you know that Peter Lorre’s character was named Ugarte.

Representing the New World is Montoya Vineyards Pinot Noir Monterey County 2019.  Monterey County is huge piece of real estate and the two major varieties that have found critical acclaim for the soils and climate there is Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The region was recorded as being planted for grapes a couple of centuries ago by the Franciscan Friars and the Spanish Mission in Soledad.  There is not much to glean from Montoya Vineyards, but I will presume that they buy fruit that they have contracted for from other vineyards.  The winery has two vineyards (Twin Oaks and Suter) for planting and only Suter is listed in the Arroyo Seco Vineyards site as having Pinot Noir.  According to the notes offered there was extended skin maceration during fermentation and aging in French Oak.  According to the furnished notes with the wine “juicy blackberry and raspberry fruit flavors, with balanced structure and a silky, complex finish.”  Additional notes discuss “raspberry and rhubarb flavors with a long lingering finish.”      

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Two Old World Distinctive Whites

Posted on July 22, 2022 by thewineraconteur

I stopped at my local wine shop, The Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan, to pick up a case of my Bride’s latest go-to wines.  I may be a blogger, but she is the darling of the shop and they are always checking on how she is doing.  They were able to ably assist in her desire for more wine, and offered a couple of wines for me to taste as well, and of course to relay the results to my Bride.

We started with a taste of Bodegas Gerardo Mendez Albarino DO Ferreiro Rias Baixas subzone Val do Salnes 2020.  The DO wine zone in the Galicia region of Spain was awarded in 1988, and the predominate grape is Albarino.  There are five distinct Subzones and Val do Salnes is considered one of the most important of the subzones and it is known as being the coolest and wettest of the zones off the coastline and a granite soil.  The DO rules state that the wine must be seventy percent Albarino, but this particular wine is pure Albarino.  Bodegas Gerardo Mendez has vineyards dating back to 1850 and now they are completely modernized. This straw-colored wine offered big floral notes.  On the palate a very crisp wine with tones of floral and mouth-watering acidity with a decent finish of minerals, a wine that a lot of people refer to as green and flinty.

We followed that wine with Domaine Huet L’Echansonne or just Domaine Huet is the leading producer in the Vouvray region of the Loire Valley.  They are known for their assorted Chenin Blanc wines, both for their richness and concentration of flavor, but also for their ability to age for a long time.  The thirty-five-hectare estate has three main south-facing vineyards on a plateau above the river and smaller plots as well.  Domaine Huet Cuvée Constance Vouvray 2016 and it is a tribute to Madame Constance Huet and only uses the late and concentrated grapes from the three main vineyards. This wine is only produced in small quantity and only in years when the high standards for this wine are met.  “Constance” was the result of an accident. In 1989, during the final harvesting of the berries, the grape juice was so exceptional, that the fermentation lasted for months. After consultations, it was decided to blend only these long-fermented juices together and Cuvée Constance was born. Grapes are pressed and fermentation using only natural yeasts with half in demi-muids (600-liter capacity oak barrels typically used in the Rhone Valley) and half in traditional vats for six months and a production of five-hundred cases.  My first thoughts were that this pinkish-gold wine was honey, but then it revealed ripe pears and sweet spices with a delicious and long finish, and yes, I nursed this tasting for all it was worth.

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Café Santé

Posted on July 20, 2022 by thewineraconteur

Before we left Boyne Mountain, which is in Boyne Falls, which is near Boyne Highlands, we went to Boyne City.  We were touted to try this bistro, just off of the water.  There are not that many places that I can think of, at least around here that mention Pimm’s Cup and Absinthe, so it was worth the trip, especially since we were in the Boynes.  We had a chance to leave the board meeting early, as the guest speaker following the last breakfast had cancelled, so we finished packing; had some more goodbyes, loaded up the car and decided to have an interesting lunch, before driving home. 

I had thought that we could start with a country style Pâté with all the accoutrements, but that idea was vetoed as being too heavy for the long drive home, my Bride can be so thoughtful and realistic, while I guess I just stay a hedonist.  My Bride wanted to be healthy, so she ordered and now don’t be surprised, the Lemon Fried Whitefish Caesar Salad (but they were able to bake the Whitefish in Lemon (so she was thrilled)). She is always trying other dressings, especially when they are house-made, and this salad came with Parmigiano-Reggiano.  The other bonus was that the Whitefish came from John Cross Fisheries that is quite famed for the region (and also makes great Smoked Whitefish that can be bought at their shop).  My Bride had enjoyed Domaine de la Ferrandiere Sauvignon Blanc Pays d’Oc IGP 2020.  The estate is located between Corbieres and Minervois in the ancient wetlands of the Languedoc. This area was drained under the command of Louis XIV at the end of the 17th Century.  For over a century the property was owned by the Gau family and they sold the estate to Domaines Paul Mas in 2013.  They specialize in single varietal wines from their seventy hectares of vines. I couldn’t find any production notes, but I will presume that the wine was produced in Stainless Steel vats, but I did find a curious fact that the vineyards are flooded for forty days after each winter, in an attempt to regulate the natural salinity of the soil.  This technique allows the vines to be grown on ancestral rootstock, as opposed to American rootstalk, as the vineyard was protected from phylloxera.  The Pays d’Oc IGP basically is the entire region of the Languedoc that are not made to the strict rules of the AOC level appellations.   The wine was a pretty almost golden color with notes of green apple and white fruits.  On the palate, soft fruit with high acidity that lingered into the finish, making it a very easy wine to drink, and beckoning for another sip.

I went with their Fish & Chips, which were Lemon breaded Great Lakes Whitefish, with Belgian Frites, accompanied by Sauce Remoulade and Rouille.  It was a fun version of a Friday Lenten dish, especially with the two sauces.  Well, it finally happened, I can understand when I go reminiscing about wines in my youth, but I just had a wine within the month that is under the radar.  I had a glass of Domaine de la Range Chardonnay Val de Loire 2020 and I cannot find it.  Oh well, the Val de Loire IGP was created in 2009 and is allowed in fourteen Departments of the Loire Valley.  It was a nice golden color with floral and citrus notes.  On the palate, it was a Chardonnay, better than some industrial bulk wines, but with Fish and Chips it worked. 

    

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Another Farewell

Posted on July 18, 2022 by thewineraconteur

We were enjoying our time at Boyne Mountain, my Bride was delivering her last reports at the board meeting and introducing her replacement. I was there for the fun, as always, since I have been able to attend as her guest.  The resort is a four-season resort, and there is always stuff to do.  Of course, I try to keep up with my writings and correspondence, but it is all fun.  The hardest part is at my age, trying not to overeat.  At breakfast, there was buffet tables with fresh fruit, pastries, oatmeal, scrambled eggs, assorted meats and vegetables; and if that was not enough there was also a station to have an omelet or Eggs Benedicts made.  For lunch, this time it was a buffet with a Tex-Mex influence and it wasn’t even Taco Tuesday, but the spread was elaborate.  I was happy with the Guacamole (which was decent for gringos) and the Beef or Chicken Fajitas. 

That evening of the board meeting, we had a barbecue with the featured items being New York Strip Steaks and Salmon.  Once again, it was a buffet set up, so nobody went hungry especially after the earlier two meals.   The buffet was in an adjacent building and then we all gathered outside to dine.  And my Bride did a great job of holding it all together, because after dinner, they made a special announcement to thank her for the last twenty-four years of service.  They even had a special cake and the next morning, we were making sure that especially the members that had children attending, should take some more of the cake home.  Some did the Ziplines, and I quietly side stepped away and let my Bride enjoy her last night with her Euchre buddies, as she had over the years made the one night into quite a get-together for those that enjoy the game. 

While the food was in the adjacent building, the bartenders were out in the sun with the rest of us.  I even had them make an impromptu Margarita, which was pretty decent, for being done on the cuff.  That evening the wines being offered were from the William Hill Estate Winery.  The winery was founded in 1976 by William Hill on a two-hundred-acre parcel at the foot of Atlas Peak on the Silverado Bench.  The wines being poured were the William Hill Estate Winery Merlot Central Coast 2018 and the William Hill Estate Winery Central Coast Chardonnay 2019.  The Central Coast stretches from San Francisco to Santa Barbara and includes San Francisco Bay, Monterey County, San Benito County, San Luis Obispo County and Santa Barbara County.  These wines are made for quick consumption and not for cellaring.  The wines were poured in plastic glasses, which are not the best for writing about wines, but ideal for quaffing.  The Chardonnay was a pretty gold color offering notes of citrus, melons and spices.  On the palate stone fruits in a well-balanced wine that offered a bit of creamy texture.  The Merlot had a deep color with notes of cherry and plums.  On the palate, there was a bit more plum in a very soft textured and easy to drink wine.  

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