Provence in the City 2012

In late March, 17 producers from Provence descending on Washington, D.C. (as well as other U.S. cities) to present their signature dry rosé wines. I was fortunate to be on the invite list and sampled almost all of these, as well as a few white and red wines produced in southern France. For those who have followed our coverage of Languedoc and Rhone, Provence is located east of the former and south of the later. Just look for Marseille and Toulon on the map. It is a classic Mediterranean climate with on average 2,900 hours of sunshine per year, mild winters, and little rainfall. Prevailing winds and cooler night time temperatures cool the grapes - with more pronounced cooling at higher elevations.

Provence is an ancient wine growing region. Although the region was the first Roman province outside of Italy (Provincia Romana); it was Greek sailors who introduced viticulture and wine making to Provence. The "birthplace of the French vineyard". The Greeks at the time specialized in pale rosé wines which continued even when the Romans introduced red wines. Today Provence is the only wine region worldwide that specializes in rosé - a 2,600 year old tradition.

In France, rosé wines are generally created using one of two processes. In the first, rosé wines are produced by the Saignée method or bleeding of red wine grapes. During maceration, the crushed grapes soak on their skins, which impart color into the juice. After maceration or when enough color has been imparted, some of the juice is bled off in order to add concentration to the reds. The run-off juice is then fermented into a separate rosé wine. Two wine styles for the cost of one. The second method is direct pressing of the grapes. This technique results in a lighter colored wine because the grapes have less contact with the skins.

In Provence, the grapes used to produce rosé wine are usually Grenache, assembled with other varieties into the final wine. At this tasting the blends included usually Grenache with Cinsault, Carignan, Syrah, or Mouvedre; and sometimes Cabernet Sauvignon, Tibouren, and Rolle (Vermentino). The later two add fragrance and aromatics to the final blend "lending rosé a particularly rich bouquet".

At the Washington DC tasting, I started with an old friend, Caves d'Esclans. Four years ago I tasted my first d'Esclans and have been hooked since. Due to budgetary constraints I stay with their "lower" end wines but today I was able to sample their higher end portfolio such as the $90 Garrus and $70 Les Clans. The grapes for the Garrus were harvested from a single vineyard and 80-year old vines. The two wines consist of both Grenache and Rolle (Vermentino) and show how rosé wines can have texture and creaminess. A little oak goes a long way. Their mid-price Chateau d'Esclans ($35) is just as nice. Hard to move on from here.

As I continued tasting, I learned more about the regions and grape varieties. At Château Gassier, I learned about the long hot growing season (325 days of sun) and what general attributes that the big three (Grenache-grapefruit, Cinsault-strawberry, Syrah-red currant) add to the wines. And their 946 cuvée ($30) was very nice, a multi-grape assembly of Syrah, Grenache, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan, and Cinsault. The 946 refers to the vineyards altitude in meters.

I seemed to enjoy the maritime wines such as the Les Maitres Vignerons de la Presqu'ile de Saint-Tropez Château de Pampelonne Rosé ($19). This is a joint venture between nine producers and a blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, and Tibouren. And the organic shoreline vineyard at Château Léoube was pouring their Rosé de Léoube - a dry, refreshingly acidic blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, and Mourvèdre that is an amazing value at $11.

Like most wine regions, Provence is populated by historical vineyards. At Mas de Cadenet, the Negre family has been tending vines since 1813, where the seven generations have survived the Phylloxera epidemic and debilitating weather. In 1956 Provence experienced three weeks where the temperature fell below -23C, not many cold climate hybrids could survive those temperatures. Today Matthieu Negrel shares the winemaking duties with his sister and father, who took over the family operation 33 years ago. And at Chateau Roubine, Valeria Rousselle has a domain that was first farmed by the Knights Templar in the 1300s. Today it is a respected Cru Classé and there rosé cuvée is produced from the saignée of their red cuvée. They also were pouring a tasty white wine made from Ungni Blanc, Sémillon, Rolle, and Clairette - grapes that are not very familiar to most U.S. consumers.

Each wine I tasted is worth revisiting and there were too many to describe in one sitting or tasting. Here are a few more wines that I had noted. Mouvedre finally came on my radar with the Saint-André de Figuière Vielles Vignes, a wine with balance from head to tail and texture. The Domaine de la Fouquette was pouring their Rosée d'Aurore that was pure citrus. Château Ferry Lacombe was pouring several wines with all composed of Grenache and Syrah. My favorite was the Cuvée Cascaï ($12) which also contained Cinsault that was harvested from some of the domain's oldest vines. This wine had a texture not found in many rosés and was simply fantastic. As was the Grenache, Cinsault, and Tibouren blend from Rimauresq Classique, Cru Classé ($20).

Make sure you visit the Vins of Provence to learn more about Provence and their incredible wine history.

Keel And Curley Winery - Blueberry Farming to Wine

While the family was enjoying Legoland, in Winter Haven Florida, I snuck out to visit the nearest winery, Keel And Curley Winery. The winery is just outside of Tampa Bay and provides residents and tourists an opportunity to taste local fruit wine as well as live music on occasion. Blueberry farmer, Joe Keel, started the winery in 2003 as a way to utilize unharvested fruit. In the blueberry industry, many blueberries remain on the bush when the cost of picking additional units is equal or less than the wholesale price received. Keel didn't want to mess with jams or pies, so he started making wine at home. As he learned and defined his craft - Keel And Curley Winery was born.

Blueberry wine is still central to their operation as they produce three styles: dry, semi-dry, and sweet. And last year they introduced two blackberry wines, dry and sweet. All these wines are made from 100%. Although the sweeter wines are their best sellers, I preferred the dry versions of both wines. They retained the fruit characters of the blueberry and blackberry and could easily pass for a medium bodied red wine such as Chambourcin.

Keel and Curley Winery also produces a series of fusion wines where grape juice sourced on the open market is co-fermented with different fruit juices. These wines are all semi-sweet to sweet, and to me are basically gimmicks marketed to tourists. And I've fallen and purchased the Key West – Key Lime in the past. Best used as a Margarita base. And my traveling partner fell for the Tangerine Zinfandel. Yes, gimmicks sell. But if you come across their wines at Publix or at the winery - I recommend the dry 100% Blueberry or Blackberry.

MyJoogTV Visits Sugarloaf Mountain Winery

When our jam band friends Dangermuffin agreed to participate on MyJoogTV, they stated they wanted to tour a winery. So we selected Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard. The winery is the closest winery to Washington D.C. and specializes in Bordeaux varieties as well as Chardonnay and Pinot Gris. They have also been able to leverage many years of east coast wine experience, particularly from viticulture consultant Lucie Morton, to produce several excellent wines. During the filming we tasted their 2010 Chardonnay and 2009 EVOE! - a blend of Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot, and Cabernet Franc. The Chardonnay is crafted in the Chablis style - no secondary malolactic fermentation - and aged in French Oak. This wine exudes chardonnay - plenty of fruit - no oak residue, and a long tail. The EVOE! is aged 19 months in French Oak and the Merlot dominants for a very drinkable wine with very soft tannins. Both wines display why Maryland Wine should not be avoided, but instead, actively sought.

Old Westminster Winery: Bringing Youthful Vigor to the Old Line State

Maryland Wine is receiving a youthful boost with the entry of Old Westminster Winery into the industry. The winery is owned and operated by the Baker Family, with siblings Drew, Lisa, and Ashli managing the vineyard, wine making, and marketing respectively. And evidently the housing crash of 2008 lead to the creation of the winery. Wanting to sell the winery, and seeing reduced property values, the family investigated alternative uses for the land and decided, why not a vineyard and winery. They then planted seven acres of grapes, some unique to Maryland: Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Merlot, Chardonnay, Albariño, and Sauvignon Blanc. The first harvest from these vines occurred during the Autumn of 2011, so they will need to wait two more years until they can utilize estate fruit. In the meantime, they are sourcing fruit from other Maryland vineyards, Chatham Vineyards in the eastern shore of Virginia, and from California.

As their name suggests, the winery is located just outside of Westminster, Maryland and expects wine sales to be driven through their tasting room. They are located only twenty miles from the Baltimore Beltway. They also plan to follow the wine style modeled by neighboring Black Ankle Vineyards and eschew the sweet wine market and concentrate on premium dry wines. Currently the winery is not open to the public (expect a Spring 2013 opening) but are allowing 100 Century Club members to receive lifetime access to the facility in order to taste the wines as they progress from barrel to bottle.

Lisa Baker invited me to visit the winery and sample the wines from barrel. While planning the trip I realized their story may be interesting to viewers of VirginiaWineTV, so we also filmed an episode which will be available in early April. How interesting? Well, how often to 20-something year old siblings start a winery. Drew, the elder, is 26 and could not join us since he is on sabbatical in New Zealand, learning from the southern harvest. Ashli, the youngest, will graduation college this year take over all marketing functionality. And Lisa, 23, is the full time wine maker. Her Chemistry degree is an obvious advantage in her new vocation and there are plenty of consultants available to instruct through each phase of wine making. However, my initial skepticism was how has she developed a palette for noticing the nuances in different wines. She acknowledges this potential handicap and described to me how she and Drew have tasted hundreds of wines trying to identify missing structure or imperfections. They will continue this crash course in order to improve both their palettes. And Lisa is getting plenty of practice in the winery. Last year the Maryland Assembly passed a law legalizing the equivalent of a custom crush. So this year, Old Westminster Winery became such a facility and Lisa assisted consultant John Levenberg in making wine for two other Maryland start-ups, Crow Vineyard and Winery and Vineyards At Dodon.

I arrived at the winery to find their first bottled wine, the 2011 Maryland Rosé, produced from the bleeding of their Maryland sourced Merlot. The also bottled a Rosé from the Chatham grapes, keeping that juice separate so they could enter the Maryland Rosé into state competitions. Since their red wines will remain in barrel for another 12-14 months, the saignée rosés provide the Bakers with quick proof that there infant enterprise is truly a functioning winery.

Before we sampled the wines, Lisa described how each stage in the wine making process is dictated by their core philosophy: producing high quality wines. These include hand sorting the grapes, separate heating and cooling systems built into the fermentation tanks, and close oversight with the winery's consultants (initially John Levenberg, now Carl DiManno).

We started our tasting with the Merlot from Chatham and it was quickly evident that another to creating quality wine was obtaining quality fruit. And this lot contained solid fruit. After only two months in new French oak, the wine retaining a fruit forward character and a little harsh tannins from the stems and skin. Over time these tannins will mellow and change as tannins from the wood are imparted into the wine. Yet this wine is really drinkable now - a solid wine that hopefully will retain its fruit during the next 14 months in barrel.

The next two wines were sourced from California and will be used to supplement the Maryland and Virginia lots. The fruit from both barrels, one Merlot, the other Syrah, were lighter than the Chatham Merlot and will need more time in barrel to generate more body and structure. The wines will also benefit from barrel aging to introduce more tannins. Ironically, these batches will test Lisa's wine making skills.

The final wine was a Maryland Cabernet Franc, where they grapes were sourced from a vineyard in Thurmont Maryland. In general, this wine is coming along nicely. It had as much fruit flavor as the Chatham Merlot, but with less tannins. Evidently the tannins are mellowing quickly because Lisa noticed a change since the last taste a week ago. And paired with a proprietary chocolate, the tannins disappeared completely. Maybe that's how they will market dry wines to a sweet wine market.

I look forward to returning to Old Westminster in six or seven months when they start crushing and fermenting their white wine. And hopefully at that time Drew will be available to navigate us through their second year of harvest. Check out their Century Club video below and I'll be adding the link to the Virginia Wine TV episode soon. Cheers.

Wine 101: Carmenère

Most of you are probably already aware of the phylloxera epidemic that ransacked Europe vineyards starting in 1867. One Bordeaux grape, Carmenère was particularly susceptible to the louse. The epidemic was finally alleviated when viniferia vines were grafted to phylloxera-resistant American rootstocks. Once again Carmenère suffered because the vine didn't take to the new grafts and growers felt the grape was too difficult even when conditions were favorable. Thus Carmenère was eventually replaced with more familiar vines, such as Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, and was soon thought to be extinct. Once a major player in Médoc and Graves and then gone....at least until 1994. That is when Professor Jean-Michel Boursiquot from the Montpellier's school of Oenology conducted DNA analyze and determined that a Chilean Merlot clone was actually Carmenère. How was that possible?

Before the phylloxera epidemic, Chilean vignerons had been importing the vines from France thinking they were receiving Merlot grapes or a clone of Merlot. Apparently, their leaves are very similar. They had no clue it was a distinct grape variety. And in fact, it was a general practice to combine the Merlot grapes and this "clone" which lead Chilean Merlot to differ from Merlot wines produced elsewhere. Then came Professor Boursiquot's DNA analysis and a few years later Carmenère was categorized as a distinct Chilean grape variety. And today, Carmenère is Chile’s signature grape.

Carmenère is dark-skinned grape variety and requires a long growing season to reach its prime potential. These conditions can be found in the Colchagua Valley in Chile, the southernmost portion of the Rapel Valley - and located about 80 miles southwest of Santiago. The Colchagua Valley was named 2005 Wine Region of the Year by Wine Enthusiast and the warm Mediterranean climate has been compared to Napa Valley. Humidity is low, frost is unknown, and breezes from the Pacific cool the valley at night creating a potential 40°F diurnal temperature variation. A perfect vine growing environment; particularly for Cabernet Sauvignon (11,186 hectares; but Carmenère is well represented at 2,344 hectares.

The grape is also gaining traction in other regions. It has returned home to Bordeaux and crossed into Italy where it owes its existence to a similar story. Italian growers that were importing Cabernet Franc from France realized these grapes differed with traditional Cabernet Franc in many aspects. Yes, it was Carmenère. The grape has become so popular in Italy that it is now legal to include Carmenère in DOC wines. It's also been planted in Australia and New Zealand (once again masquerading as Cabernet Franc) and has found a home in a few vineyards in the United States. One of these is Seven Hills Winery in Walla Walla, Washington. Winemaker Casey McClellan explains why:

It has a unique sensory profile that runs to red raspberry, dried herb and white pepper in good years. Adds to complexity in blends too.

We use it in blends more often than as a 100% varietal, but I will have released three vintages varietally. French Oak 30-40% new. 18 months or so in cellar. Nice, medium bodied red that is more dynamic than Merlot but not as heavy as Cabernet.

This is still a niche varietal that arouses interest and curiosity. It does require education of the customer, but we are not thinking of getting into Carmenère in a big way…just something fun to show people that is new and rare.

Want to know what to expect with a Carmenère wine? Our friend, Todd Trzaskos from Vermont Wine Media, is a student of Chilean wines and explains, "Carmenère has the fruit of Merlot but plummier, tannins of Cabernet Sauvignon, but softer. I'll drink to that.

#WBW75 - Tarara Winery 2010 Honah Lee White

One of the most recognized vineyards in the Commonwealth of Virginia is Honah Lee Vineyard. The property is owned by Wayne and Vera Preddy and sits at 1000 feet elevation on a steep South-West facing slope in central Virginia (Orange). This means that the grapes are exposed to an abundance of sunlight during the hot summer months; but the elevation provides suitable diurnal temperature variation through night-time cooling. The soil is hard clay which limit deep root growth and leads to more fruit character over minerality.

The vineyard was first planted by Jim and Sharon Horton from Horton Vineyards when they leased the property from the Preddy's. The vineyard provided the foundation for Horton to quickly become one of the premier wineries in the state and showcased their Rhone and Portuguese varieties. However Horton was eventually evicted from the property after a dispute with the landlords. Horton's loss quickly became other winery's gain as the vineyard's sourced the fruit to several Virginia wineries.

And many of these wineries choose to create single vineyard wines from the grapes. Delaplane Cellars, for example, has or continues to produce a Honah Lee single varietal Viognier, Syrah, and Tannat. Our feature winery today, Tarara Winery, has created an interesting take on the single vineyard theme by creating a single vineyard blend: the 2010 Honah Lee White. The blend consists of Virginia's signature grape Viognier (40%), Petit Manseng (40%), and Roussanne (20%). This is a dry wine with peach and apricot flavors - thanks to the Viognier - and plenty of balanced acidity thanks to the petit manseng. Winemaker Jordan Harris writes that "Honah Lee Vineyard is one of our favorite partners....the fruit from Honah Lee is some of the most enticing and exotic fruit we get each year." And one of Jordan's goals is to recognize and highlight the best vineyard sites in Virginia as evident by the Tranquility, Nevaeh, and Honah Lee labels.

This year the 2010 Honah Lee White was the only Viognier based wine to receive a Gold medal in the newly revamped 2012 Governor's Cup competition. Revamped in the sense that, among other changes, now all wines submitted into the Governor's Cup must consist of 100% Virginia grown fruit - reversing the previous policy of allowing 25% outside fruit. We concurred with the award and after sampling a few at the Governor's Cup reception, "borrowed" a bottle to use in our toast during our interview with Governor McDonnell below. Cheers.

Barrel Tasting with Delaplane Cellars

Last Saturday night (March 10th) we were invited, along with several other wine bloggers, to Delaplane Cellars where owners Jim and Betsy Dolphin were showcasing their soon to be released red wines. The winery focuses on single vineyard wines, whether single varietal or blends. And the winery excels in showcasing these vineyards on the wine's labels - a practice we wish more wineries would follow. But before heading downstairs into the barrel room, we were first offered a palate cleansing white, the 2010 Mélange Blanc, a blend of Chardonnay (62%), Honah lee Viognier (27%) and Petit Manseng (11%). Even with the petit manseng, this is a dry blend - fruity with refreshing acidity. For those of us who usually enjoy the winery's 100% Honah Lee Viognier, this wine will have to substitute, since they did not receive enough fruit to produce a single varietal.

Once downstairs we started with the first estate wine bottled at the winery, the 2011 Delaplane. The vines were planted in 2008, and thus, three years later bearing suitable fruit. The blend is predominately Merlot (50%), followed by Cabernet Sauvignon (33%) and Cabernet Franc (16%). The wine is fruity with low tannins making this an easy drinking wine. The only deficiency was a lack of mid-palette - but that will probably go unnoticed by most consumers.

The next stop was at a Slavokian oak barrel filled with their Williams Gap 2010 using grapes sourced from Williams Gap Vineyard - located in Loudoun County near Round Hill, Virginia. The wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (31%), Merlot (30%), Cabernet Franc (27%), and Petite Verdot (12%). This is a bigger wine than the Delaplane- with bold flavors and more tannins on the tail, even though the wine went through extended masceration to soften the tannin structure. This will be a fine wine, possibly my favorite blend of the evening.

The final blend was the 2010 Springlot, sourced from grapes grown on the top of Naked Mountain by John Everson. The proportion of grapes was directly related to amount of grapes sourced which corresponded to a semi-Right Bank wine: Cabernet Franc (40%), Cabernet Sauvignon (30%), Merlot (17%), and PV (14%).

We then moved to two single varietal red wines starting with the 2010 Shirland Syrah aging in a new American Oak barrel. For those who are interested, the vineyard is located near Middleburg. The wine will be located in the people's cellars rather quickly since Delaplane has a history of crafting mighty fine Syrah. I don't see this as an exception.

The other single varietal red was the 2010 Honah Lee Tannat and as many are aware, this Orange, VA vineyard is the source of many different grape varieties. Whereas their 2009 Tannat needed to lay down because of the high tannins - the 2010 version is ready to drink now. The juice was pressed quickly at dryness so as not to add even more tannins. Tannat is quickly becoming a favorite wine of ours and this is another example of an underrated grape that excels in the Commonwealth.

Finally, we sampled what we consider Virginia's other signature white grape, Petit Manseng. For the first time Delaplane is producing an estate Late Harvest Petit Manseng which comes in at 10.5% RS but with typical acidity to balance the sugar. This pineapple flavored wine will satisfy their consumer's demands for a sweet offering.

This was a special evening where I was fortunate enough to be invited to the barrel sampling, but also a chance to meet or catch up with fellow bloggers My Vine Spot, Wine About Virginia, Virginia Wine In My Pocket, and Craig's Grape Adventure. Cheers to Delaplane Cellars.

Tasting the Wines of America

Last night we were invited to the joint WineAmerica & Winegrape Growers of America reception on Capital Hill called "Taste the Wines of America". The event was to recognize the Congressional Wine Caucus, which is bipartisan group of lawmakers aiming to "educate and engage colleagues in legislative and regulatory matters pertaining to the wine community." The reception also coincides with meetings within the wine industry on matters affecting the entire community. But the highlight for most was the reception which featured wines from every region of the country. Most impressive was the large selection of wines from the Other 46. Yes, California, Oregon, Washington, and New York were well represented, but how many times do you get to sample wines from Massachusetts, Iowa, Nebraska, Georgia, Indiana, Arizona....... You get the picture.


We walked in to immediately see the three B's of Virginia representing the Southeast: Barboursville Vineyards, Boxwood Winery, and Breaux Vineyards. Plenty of Viognier and Bordeaux blends available at that table, as well, as wines from Tennessee, Georgia and North Caroline, with Biltmore Estate Winery representing the Tar Heels. We learned that their estate NC wines are made from grapes grown in Polk County, south of Asheville.

We moved next to this year's DrinkLocalWine.com hosts, Colorado Wines, which were part of the Rocky Mountain contingent. Also representing Colorado was Guy Drew from Guy Drew Vineyards in Cortez Colorado who was pouring several of his wines: Viognier, Rose, Riesling, and a very nice Meritage. Another Colorado wine we really enjoyed was the Rhone blend made from Snowy Peaks Winery from Estes Park. Their Grand Valley "Eleve" consists of Syrah, Mourvedre, Cinsault, and Viognier. Incredible that these grapes can flourish in the Grand Valley. Finally, we met Dr. Ron Bitner, one of the first growers in Idaho and owner of Bitner Vineyards in Caldwell. We enjoyed his Snake River Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve where the grapes are harvested around Thanksgiving. Yes, that late. Frost is obviously a concern, but the vineyards steep slopes allow the cold air to pass easily down the mountain. And we finally got to sample a wine from the famed Arizona Stronghold Vineyards - this the 2009 "Site Archive" Merlot. Hope to follow up with a visit to Arizona wine country this summer. And check out the DLW12 Conference being held April 28th at the Metro State College in Denver. The Twitter tasting of Colorado wines should be very, very interesting.

The next table was the wines from the Northeast, handled by Maryland Wine. We started with the flexible Chambourcin, sampling the Rose from Port of Leonardtown Winery Leonardtown Maryland and the Knob Hall Winery (Clear Spring MD) Cumberland Valley "Le Reve Rouge". This was an interesting take of a Rhone wine, substituting Chambourcin for Syrah and Vidal for Viognier. After tasting some wines from Massachusetts, we found our favorite from North East Pennsylvania: Presque Isle Wine Cellars Dornfelder. There's a nice little micro-climate near Lake Erie which allows vinferia grapes such as Dornfelder, Riesling, Pinot Noir, and even Cabernet Sauvignon to survive.

The Great Lakes were next, featuring wines from Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin. We were reminded why Traminette is the state grape of Indiana through Wildcat Creek Winery. Wisconsin was represented by Wollersheim Winery and there were several Michigan wines; yet we couldn't find the L. Mawby Vineyards Cremant Classic sparkling wine. Painful. Someone was monopolizing the goods. But not the ice wine. The Breitenbach Wine Cellar Vidal Blanc Ice Wine is a true ice wine, where the frozen grapes are harvested during the middle of the night to maintain the condensed sugars. Nice.

And then there the wines of the Midwest containing bottles and bottles of unique grapes: Blanc du Bois, Vermentino, Tempranillo, Marquette, Brianna, St. Croix, Norton, Edelweiss, and Vignoles. The table was represented by Missouri Wines, James Arthur Vineyards from Raymond Nebraska, and Fredericksburg Winery from Fredericksburg, Texas. The later was pouring a savory Muscat Canelli and started a trend of nice whites including the McPherson Cellars Rousanne and the Duchman Family Winery Vermentino. These are two clean, food friendly wines. We've mentioned the Stone Hill Winery Norton many times over the years and this night reinforced why that grape should not be overlooked. And then there were the hybrids - many manufactured from the University of Minnesota specifically for cold weather climates. There were the Tassel Ridge Winery Brianna, Marquette, and St. Croix and the James Arthur Vineyards Edelweiss, a sweet wine with a balanced acidity. Yet the easy favorite was the JAV Vignoles - an off dry wine with strong apple flavors and nice acidity. This is one wine I always want to have available; suitable for dry and sweet drinkers.

As for the big four (California, Oregon, Washington, and New York), we were able to sample a little from these tables. For New York, Anthony Road Wine Company stood out with their Cabernet Franc\Lemberger and Pinot Noir; lovely wines. We stuck to Pinot in Oregon and California, first the Willamette Valley Vineyards and King Estate Winery, then the La Crema 2009 Sonoma Coast. Merlot and Viognier were the choices from Washington - from Three Rivers Winery and Novelty Hill Winery respectively. Then there was the leathery wine - the Red Tail Winery SP 2007 Ventura County Syrah - which Andrew Stover recommended. Total earth and leather - so interesting....

Thanks WineAmerica and the Winegrape Growers of America for a nice tasting from across the states. Cheers.

Wine 101: Carmine

We recently learned that one of the founders of the post-Prohibition east coast wine industry was Philip Wagner, founder of Boordy Vineyards. Wagner and his wife Jocelyn began planting grape vines in the early 1930's specializing in French Hybrids and propagated these to vineyards throughout the East and Midwest. "Vidal Blanc, for example, was first found by the Wagners in a backyard vineyard in Poitier, France, a town southwest of Paris about half way to Bordeaux, and cuttings were 'smuggled' into the U.S. wrapped in a damp towel in Jocelyn’s purse." Other grapes the Wagners championed were Chambourcin and Baco Noir.

Apparently these grapes were not enough. Rumor has it that Wagner contacted Dr. Harold Olmos, of UC-Davis, to develop a tannic, "hearty grape that could translate into a marketable wine for colder climates". After 20 years of cross breeding, Olmos finally publicized this cold climate grape: Carmine - a cross of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignane, and Merlot. What? A cross of three grapes. How is that possible? Well, with a lot of time and patience. First, Olmos crossed Cabernet Sauvignon and Carignane. The progeny was then crossed with Merlot - so in reality Cabernet Sauvignon and Carignane are the grandparents. The result is a late budding and ripening grape, slightly larger than Cabernet Sauvignon, with loose clusters. Perfect for most American wine growing regions. Yet, despite Olmos' efforts, Carmine never really gained traction. Today, the grape is grown in only a handful of vineyards in the United States.

The largest grower is perhaps Kramer Vineyards, located in Gaston, Oregon. Trudy Kramer related to us why Carmine.

"Every wine has a story. We were amateur winemakers and found out about Jim Leyden at Courting Hill Vineyard who had a nice selection of different varieties. So it was one place to go many times throughout the vintage to pick grapes to make our wine. One grape he had was Carmine. He had brought it into the state—not sure if it was legal or not. But he was intrigued with it and was trying to get people to plant it. When he found out that we were planting, he talked Keith into planting it, but I wasn’t sold on it. My take on it was that none of the grapes it was from, Cabernet, Carignane, or Merlot, did well in the Willamette Valley so why would we even think of planting it? So he pleaded with me and I said, “So, if it doesn’t sell, out it goes!” Deer were ravaging it for a few years until Keith finally put a good deer fence up so we make our first in 1998. It wasn’t until 2000 that we figured out how to craft a good wine out of the grape. The issue is ripening and the presence of the green bell pepper notes that I don’t like at all. Carmine was supposed to be for the “cool” central California coast. We are a lot cooler than the Central California Coast! But Jim knew they were growing it successfully in New York and Pennsylvania in cooler regions there. People made regular red wine, rose, and sparkling out of it."

And Kramer has experienced how versatile the grape is - from crafting a big red tannic wine to a soft rose.

"When have a vintage warm enough to give us riper flavors, then we make a red wine ferment in bins, press out before fermentation is totally done, settle, and put into barrels to finish fermentation. We also inoculate with malolactic. The acids are pretty high so we often have to adjust those in the beginning. Sugars are low so we have to add that every vintage. In 2010, the fruit had a lot of unripe flavors in the skins, just green as it could be. Since it was the latest vintage ever, we decided to wait into November and pick it as late as we could. We took a sample of the juice to the lab and we just couldn’t see how it could be made into a red wine. As we were reading the lab report, Kim tweeted about our dilemma on-line. A local wine writer suggested doing a rose. So she runs out and takes a juice sample and tastes it. Just delicious with no green! We were shocked. So two days after harvest, we pressed it out for a rose. The color was unbelievable—so dark it almost looked like a Pinot Noir. Turned out just great! In 2011, it was even later, so we again decided from the start to do a rose again, but this time it was very cold outside and we had to wait until day 5 to press because the color and flavors weren’t right. This wine has not yet been bottled, but it's even better than 2010! So is it appropriate for the climate? Probably not., but with inventive winemaking, cluster thinning, late picking, and attention to detail, we can make a very good wine out of it."

Educated consumers is an issue with Carmine, because, let's face it, how many of us wine geeks has heard of it. Not us until a couple weeks back. Here's Kramer again relating their experience.

"Yes, we do have to educate people who are new to our winery. We do have a following for it now which is why we have planted more. It is so different from Pinot Noir and people are curious about it. They often confuse it with Carmenere. Dr. Olmos is rolling in his grave! The work on it was done at UC Davis back in the 1950’s and only a few California vineyards have it. It is nice to have something unique for people to taste when they visit us."

So there you have it. A relatively new wine grape that perhaps you will be able to experience one day. Here is a list of the other Carmine producers that we are aware:

• Broad Run Vineyards Louisville, KY
• Brookmere Farm Vineyards Belleville, PA
• Ripken Vineyards & Winery Lodi, CA
• Wisteria Farm and Vineyard Stanley, VA

Sources:

1. Winemakermag
2. UC-Davis
3. Boordy Vineyards

Wine 101: Isabella

The origins of Isabella grape, a native Vitis Labrusca, are still unknown. Perhaps it originated in the Carolinas by random pollination of a labrusca grape and an unknown vinifera. Others have claimed that the grape was cultivated by the Cherokee Indians or that it is a cross between an unknown vinifera and muscadine grapes. Regardless of its origin, it was quickly adopted in New York and New England. In 1824, Deacon Elizah Fry successfully planted the first grapes in New York State – Catawba and Isabella. William Prince of Flushing, Long Island also acquired the grape, purchasing vines from Mrs. Isabella Gibbs, the wife of George Gibbs, a Brooklyn merchant; hence the name, Isabella. Originally the grape displayed the standard "grapey/foxy" taste and flavor associated with Labrusca grapes, but modern winemaking techniques have succeeded in removing this characteristic, resulting in a strawberry/boysenberry-like flavored wine.

Over time, Isabella began to be replaced by Concord or other hardier and more productive vinifera varieties, but has survived in a few eastern vineyards. Ironically, while production of the grape is virtually non-existent in the United States, it remains very popular in the rest of the world, where it has over 50 aliases. In Hungary and Georgia it is known as Izabella, Seksarda in Croatia, Fragola in Italy and Australia, and Albany Surprise in New Zealand. Large acreages of this grape are grown in Brazil, Russia, and in Columbia where it is that country’s most widely planted variety.

Goose Watch Winery is one New York winery that continues to utilize Isabella. The winery decided to cultivate Isabella because of the grape’s long history in New York and the fact that the variety creates a distinctive Boysenberry-like aroma which separates it from other native varieties that are just “grapey”. As a bonus, the Isabella grape retains strong name recognition in the Finger Lakes region, so visitors to the winery do not need to be cajoled to taste the wine as with other non-mainstream grapes. The winery produces a semi-sweet style Rosé of Isabella wine named after a popular wine that used to be produced by the Great Western Winery (now the Pleasant Valley Wine Company). Every vintage of this wine has won at least one gold medal and the 2004 vintage won Gold and was named “Best Native American Varietal” at the 2005 NY Wine Classic.

Isabella is also produced at a few other American wineries that specialize in producing wine from labrusca grapes. Also in New York, Barrington Cellars produces a semi-sweet rosé wine and an Ice wine from Isabella. And a little southwest in North East Pennsylvania, Heritage Wine Cellars produces several labrusca wines which include Isabella.

Win Two Tickets to the 7th annual Discover Virginia Food and Wine Festival

Who's interested in winning two free tickets to the 7th Annual Discover Virginia Food & Wine Festival, held April 21-22 in Ruckersville, Virginia? To enter, just Like the Virginia Wine TV Facebook page by April 15th. On the 16th we will select a name at random that will receive the two free wine tasting tickets.

According to the sponsors, the annual festival will offer its unique atmosphere of family friendly festival entertainment, food vendors and wine tastings. The festival will spotlight Virginia Wineries as well as many local restaurants and artisans including Burnley Vineyards, Ducard Vineyards, Mountain Cove Vineyards, and Saude Creek Vineyard. Ticket prices are reasonable with an advanced ticket priced at $14.00 and $20.00 the day of. But why not try for the two free tickets.

Finding the Finger Lakes at the Washington DC International Wine & Food Festival

Last week we attended the 13th annual Washington DC International Wine & Food Festival primarily because friends from the Finger Lakes Wine Country were pouring. In addition, this is always an opportunity to find interesting and unique wines and spirits from regions throughout the globe.

But let's start in New York. The Finger Lakes is home to Riesling and each winery usually had samples of both dry and off dry styles. Each have their place and the off-dry is usually balanced by refreshing acidity. The flavors differed amongst each winery - some apple, some peach - but all solid representations of the grape. Two of the wineries, Anthony Road and Fox Run, were also pouring Lemberger, one of our favorite wine grapes - probably because they traditionally exude blackberry flavors. The first was pouring a 50/50 blend of Lemberger and Cabernet Franc where the latter adds a little green pepper to the mix. Fox Run's was a 100% varietal Lemberger - that blackberry smoothness with with a slight peppery finish. Finally a few wines to mention were the Dr. Franks Rkatsiteli, Ravine Pinot Noir, Glenora Pinot Blanc, and Wagner Niagara. These represent the diverse grape plantings in this region. Please take a look at these wineries:

• Anthony Road Wine Company
• Casa Larga Vineyards
• Dr. Konstantin Frank's Vinifera Wine Cellars
• Fox Run Vineyards
• Glenora Wine Cellars
• Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards
• Lucas Vineyards
• Ravines Wine Cellars
• Red Newt Cellars
• Wagner Winery

I also spent a considerable amount of time with a Pisco producer. Pisco Portón was concocting a few tasty cocktails like their Portonero, Mohito, and Peruvian Strawberry Margarita - but this spirit is worthy consuming neat. It is fermented from grape must (partially fermented grape juice) and distilled to proof. That means no water is added to the distilled spirit to bring the percent alcohol down to the regulated amount. And since it is fermented using the must, the spirit contains more grape sugars and flavors. Fifteen pounds of grapes go into every bottle. Ever wonder which grapes are used in Pisco? The Pisco Portón uses three. Cheers to Pisco

• Quebranta is a non-aromatic varietal that evolved on the Peruvian coast. It is the most popular pisco grape in Peru and gives body and fullness of flavor to Pisco Portón.
  
• Albilla is a fragrant green grape with a soft and fruity taste structure. It is prized for its smooth finish in pisco.
  
• Torontel grapes have a strong citrus and peach aroma that lingers on the hands and clothing of workers who handle them. Its expression in the glass is alive with heady aromatic complexity.

There were several other spirits we enjoyed tasting. Philadelphia Distilling was pouring a new 100% corn whiskey - straight spirit - no oak aging. The sweetness from the corn was prevalent with no noticeable burn. Blue Star Beverages Czarskaya (czars gold) Vodka and completely smooth wheat based vodka distilled 15 times - yes fifteen - and filtered 20 times through a 22 carat gold mesh. Not sure what that process beings to the table - but the end result is a nice vodka. And then there was the iichiko Shochu - a spirit I had never heard of before. iichiko was pouring several styles - all made from Australian grown barley. The barley is polished and then made into a mash which is then distilled into a relatively low alcoholic spirit - starting at just 30%. Each was also extremely smooth. Interesting - but not sure I'm willing to commit to a long term relationship. Need to explore a little more.

As for the other wines, there were many, many interesting wines. Strong reds from Wild Horse Winery, Charles Krug Winery, and Franciscan Oakville Estate; Pinotage from many South African Wineries; Rhone wines; and plenty of Spanish Tempranillo and Albarino. Explore these wineries and regions. There's plenty for all of us to learn. Cheers.

Volunteering at the Virginia Wine Showcase

This weekend, the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington Virginia is hosting the 7th Annual Virginia Wine Showcase, two days to explore Virginia Wine Country. There will be 200 wines poured by about 20 Virginia wineries. There are also several interesting seminars such as Wine 101, Cigar Pairing, VA vs the World, and Vino 50. I will be volunteering on Sunday for Annefield Vineyards, a winery from southwest Virginia producing classic wines such as Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and of course, Viognier. Stop by and say hello.

#WBW74 Value Sparkling Wine: Yellow Tail Bubbles - Keeps on Bubbling

This month we finally got around to opening a bottle of sparkling wine that we had received late last year - just in time for Wine Blogging Wednesday 74 which is focusing on Value Sparkling Wine. This was the Yellow Tail Bubbles Sparkling White Wine, a very affordable sparkling wine ($10) accompanied by an interesting closure device. This is the Zork, a bottle topper that pops like a cork but can also be used to reseal the bottle, and only available on Yellow Tail sparkling wines. If you don't finish the bottle the first evening, then seal the bottle and in theory, the Zork will maintain the gas pressure. And in fact, it does work. One week ofter opening, we opened the wine - and yes, we wouldn't recommend this length of time, but the wine was still carbonated. Since this wine isn't carbonated using méthode champenoise, I suspect Yellow Tail injects a little extra carbonation to help maintain gas levels over an extended time.

Now to the wine and, really, for a $10 wine - this is a good deal. Its not completely dry, but with decent fruit, low alcohol (11.5%), and a creamy finish complements to a secondary malo-latic fermentation. Don't get too many inexpensive sparklers going through a secondary fermentation - maybe the grapes were picked a little early - holding more acidity. If you are looking for an inexpensive sparkling wine, this one's for you.

What's in the Barrel at Paradise Springs Winery?

During our Wednesday night #winechat featuring Viognier, we tasted and tweeted at Paradise Springs Winery. After the discussion, Kirk Wiles invited us to sample their 2011 vintage aging in barrel. Now, 2011 will be a challenging year - across the United States - even Mediterranean Napa Valley was affected by late season rain. In Virginia, the summer started off hot - with many grapes beginning to ripen on schedule. Then, in September, the weather cooled and the late season rains arrived. The grapes stopped maturing. Even worse, the grapes for one of the wines we tasted during #winechat, the 2011 Keswick Vineyards Les Vents d'Anges, were harvested the day after a hail storm. Can you image the condition of that fruit? Stephen Barnard performed admirably with that wine, and other winemakers will have work just as hard for their 2011 vintage.

At Paradise Springs, winemaker Rob Cox and assistant winemaker Michael Chang, are paying close attention to the wines in the tank and in the barrel. This evening we tasted Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Tannat, and Norton - all aging in different cooperages. For instance, they are aging Chardonnay in neutral and medium oak and will blend the components together before bottling. Most of the red wines are being aging in a reductive manner - where the wine may not be racked until bottling. The Cabernet Franc displayed this reductive character immediately, but once past the nose, the cherry fruit presents itself nicely. And the reduction will dissipate when racking at bottling. We also saw how the winery is the only Virginia winery to utilize a Chinese barrel. Yes, Chinese, from the Mongolicus forest. I believe it was the Malbec - and so far - so good. Yet, the biggest surprise was their Norton. Sourced from Chrysalis Vineyards, these grapes shrugged off the volatile weather as if laughing at the viniferia outsiders. Heat, humidity, cold, rain - so what. In barrel less than a couple months, the wine is already deep garnet in color with bright fruit flavors with none of the astringent acidity associated with new or poorly made Norton. This wine could be bottled today - it is that good now. And this wine, and how the grape responded to the 2011 season, justifies Jennifer McCloud's passion for Norton.

Atypical Wine Storage at WineCompass

Several Virginia bloggers have challenged our community to post photos of each of our personal wine storage techniques. Like the folks at Virginia Wine Time, I use two distinct areas for storing wine. The first is a Tex-Mex wine bar that's basically stores items ready to drink now: whether wine, spirits, or growlers ready for beer. There is no organization to the set; just find an open spot. Matters take a turn for the worse, when storing for the long term. Shielded by the abundance of toys in the basement, this secret collection is hidden from the usual suspects wanting to open bottles of Viognier, Norton, and other local wines collected on our journeys. There's wine from North Carolina and Maryland lost in those boxes; several from Kansas and Missouri; a few from California; and even some specialty wines from Florida. Key Lime Wine anyone? Schnebly Redland's Winery has it all. Now you know the secret to wine storage.





Other Blogger Wine Storing Links:

• Swirl, Sip, Snark
• Cellarblog
• Drink What You Like
• Virginia Wine Time

#WineChat Talking Viognier

Viognier - the grape of Condrieu. Or perhaps Languedoc. Definitely Virginia. Arguably Texas. Maybe California & Washington. Then there's Australia. Yes, this sensitive grape has found a home in many places, from its ascendency in Northern Rhone to its expansion into the New World. Despite this expansion, the grape variety is still relatively unknown to the general public? It was for me, until a few years ago. If you need some insight into Viognier, then check out these articles by MyVineSpot, Debra Meiburg MW & Jancis Robinson.

But don't delay, because on Wednesday February 8^th, we will be discussing Viognier when we host #winechat, the weekly Twitter conversation originated by Marie Payton (@mariepayton) at Life of Vines. And we would like you to participate. All it takes is popping a bottle of Viognier and sharing your comments on Twitter using the #winechat hash tag. Simple enough.

Dezel Quillen (@myvinespot) and I (@winecompass) will be joining several Virginia winemakers as we sample and discuss Viognier wines from several regions; but focusing specifically on the Commonwealth. Particularly since the Virginia Wine Board has designated Viognier as that state's Signature Grape. And one of these wines, The Breaux Vineyards Viognier was just selected by Oz Clarke as one of only three U.S. wines to be included in his 250 Best Wines 2012.

Over in Texas Wine Country, Russ Kane (@VintageTexas) and Denise Fraser (@DeniseFraser) will be hosting a similar tasting of Texas Viognier. He has posted a briefing for Texas wine bloggers and they will be sharing several wines, including the Lone Oak Winery 2010 Viognier. This wine just received a Double Gold in the SFO Chronicle wine competition.

For more information on the event check out the Facebook Event page. If you plan on planning a similar locality tasting - say another #vawine tasting or for North Carolina Viognier or even Central Coast Viognier - let us know so that we can update the event. And be sure to use the #winechat Twitter hash tag as well as the #vawine and #txwine tags when commenting on those wines.

Virginia

• Paradise Springs @paradisesprings
• Corcoran Vineyards @corcoranwine
• Rappahannock Cellars @Rcellars
• Potomac Point Winery @PotomacPoint
• Breaux Vineyards @breauxVineyards
• Keswick Vineyards@keswickvineyard
• Sunset Hills Vineyard @sunsethillwine
• Veritas Vineyards @veritaswinery

Texas

• Lone Oak Winery @loneoakwinery
• McPherson Cellars @mcphersoncellar
• Becker Vineyards @BeckerVineyards
• Cap-Rock Winery @CaprockWinery
• Duchman Family Winery @DuchmanWinery
• Brennan Vineyards @brennanwines

Colorado

• Creekside Cellars @creeksidecellar

Washington

• àMaurice Cellars @amauricecellars

Updated: Added video and updated wine list.

13th annual Washington DC International Wine & Food Festival Is One Week Away

We always look forward to the Washington DC International Wine & Food Festival and its just around the corner. The Grand Tasting is held at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center (1300 Pennsylvania Avenue) on February 11^th and 12^th 2012 from 2-6PM. There will be over 500 wines from all over the globe to sample including those from the Finger Lakes Wine Country, Spain, South Africa, Rhône Valley, and New Zealand. Tickets for the the Grand Tasting are $80-85 a person. See you there.

The 4th annual DrinkLocalWine Conference Steams into Colorado

After stops in Texas, Virginia, and Missouri; the DrinkLocalWine train steams into Denver, Colorado for a day of seminars and local wine. That means cool-climate grape varieties such as Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Cabernet Franc. Here is the official announcement:

DENVER (February 1, 2012) - Wine enthusiasts who want to explore Colorado terroir and learn more about the state's signature grape varieties are invited to attend the fourth annual DrinkLocalWine Conference on April 28 at the Metropolitan State College of Denver.

Open to the public, the conference attracts top national and regional wine writers who regularly cover local wines and “locapour” trends. Colorado’s approximately 100 wineries that grow European-style, cool-climate varieties, such as Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Cabernet Franc, will be center stage showcasing their wines during the all-day conference, which includes sessions, tastings and competitions.

The Colorado Wine Industry Development Board is the conference’s primary sponsor; the conference kicks off at 9 a.m. with three seminars: Colorado’s Terroir and the Challenges of High Altitude; Local Food, Local Wine and Why They Don’t Like Each Other; and Consumer Perception of Colorado and Regional Wine. At lunch, guests will participate in the Colorado Blind Challenge, a blind tasting between Colorado and California wines.

Confirmed speakers include Wayne Belding, Master Sommelier; Horst Caspari, Colorado state viticulturalist; Rene Chazotte, Pacific Club; Dave McIntyre, Washington Post; Richard Leahy, East Coast wine consultant; Stephen Menke, Colorado state enologist; Jeff Siegel, freelance wine writer and the Wine Curmudgeon; and Kyle Schlachter, Colorado Wine Press.

After lunch, more than two dozen Colorado wineries will pour wines during the Colorado Twitter Taste-Off, where guests will taste and share their thoughts on Twitter, eventually selecting their favorite wines in various categories.

The conference costs $35 for the seminars and lunch, and $35 for the Colorado Twitter Taste-Off, or $65 for both.

Colorado’s modern wine history dates to the late 1970s, when the forerunner of Colorado Cellars opened. The number of wineries has increased 20-fold since 1990, reflecting the surge in enthusiasm for regional wine in the state. Colorado’s two AVAs include the Grand Valley, in and around Grand Junction, and the West Elks, along the North Fork of the Gunnison. However, the largest concentration of wineries is along the Front Range in and around Denver, expanding to many other parts of the state.

DLW 2012 follows the success of the first three conferences -- in Dallas featuring Texas wine in 2009, in Loudoun County featuring Virginia wine in 2010, and in St. Louis featuring Missouri wine in 2011. DLW also holds an annual Regional Wine Week in October, in which more than 40 wine bloggers, writers and columnists from the U.S. and Canada write about their favorite regional wines, ranging from Ontario to New York to Florida to Texas to Colorado.

DrinkLocalWine.com's goal is to spotlight wine made in the 47 states and Canada that aren't California, Washington, and Oregon. It's the brainchild of Washington Post wine columnist Dave McIntyre and wine blogger Jeff Siegel, the Wine Curmudgeon.

Other conference sponsors include the Colorado Association for Viticulture and Enology, Metropolitan State College, Westword, Colorado Tourism, Amtrak, Visit Grand Junction, and Delta County, Colo.

Registration for the conference opens February 1. Go to DrinkLocalWine.com to buy tickets.

To reserve a room in the DrinkLocalWine.com hotel block, contact the Sheraton Denver Downtown at (303) 893-3333.
For information, call (469) 554-9463 or go to DrinkLocalWine.com.

Media Contact:
Denise Clarke
512.899.0004