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Yountville, CA

Temperature: 72°F
Humidity: 56.7%
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Sunrise: 5:56 am GMT-8
Sunset: 8:15 pm GMT-8
Updated: 8:54 am GMT-8

October 2006
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Archive for October, 2006

Have You Tried Eponymous?

October 23, 2006 in Wine, Wine Business and Winemaking. 0 Comments

Have you tried Eponymous? Wow! Had it for the first time at a staff tasting a few months ago, and enjoyed it again last night, thanks to Colleen and David (my managers and the owners of Goosecross).

I can’t resist giving a plug to our good friend, Bob Pepi, who makes this marvelous wine.

Of course, I wouldn’t bother you with this unless there was a good story (and a good wine) behind it. In this case the “it” is in the name.

First of all, how do we know Bob? You might know Bob or know of him through Robert Pepi Winery. He and his father made wine there together until it was sold to Kendall-Jackson in 1994. In 1996 Bob began a consulting business and he consults for wineries all over the world, including Goosecross. Why do we need a consultant? We’re a small operation and our Winemaker, Geoff Gorsuch, is a one-man band, managing both the vineyards and the winery. It’s not smart to work in a vacuum. There’s a very real danger of developing tunnel vision or, horror-of-horrors, a house palate! So, Bob and his partner, Jeff Booth, are available as additional very-experienced intellects, points of view, noses and palates when the weather’s quirky during harvest (as it inevitably is), for early pressing vs. extended maceration choices, blending decisions, you name it.

Even with a busy consulting business, Bob manages to make one wine of his own: Cabernet Sauvignon. I think we can all agree that if Napa Valley was only permitted to make one wine, the choice is ridiculously obvious. This is one of the best places on the planet for the variety. Bob found a vineyard on the south-east side of the valley - a steep, rocky site with very poor soil that produces some pretty wonderful stuff. Full, rich, black fruit with a healthy dose of earthy minerality. It’s almost like those poor, starving vines pulled the character right out of the ground. Great, mouth-filling texture!

Now, what about the name? Think how many eponymous wineries you can name off the top of your head: Gallo, Duckhorn, Shafer, Dunn. Well, with the sale of the Robert Pepi brand to KJ, Bob can no longer use his own name. So, in place of releasing an eponymous wine, he whimsically names the wine, itself, Eponymous as a play on words by one who is unable to use his family name on his own bottle of wine…

Anyway, if you’re lucky enough to find some, give it a try! You taste a wine like that and you know it’s good to have someone like Bob on your team!

Yountville “State Lane” Zinfandel

October 23, 2006 in Audio Winemaker Notes. 0 Comments

Ripe and rich this “State Lane” Zin sweeps across the palate with hearty flavors of berry jam, white pepper and cherry spice. Intriguing black cherry and pungent spices on the nose linger with a vanilla oak finish.

Listen to our audio winemaker note: mp3

Times, They Are A-Changin’

October 16, 2006 in Observations, Selling Wine, Wine, Wine Business, Wine Education and Winemaking. 0 Comments

As I wrote earlier in the Culinary Getaways a la Provencal entry (I know… when is this woman ever going to shut up about Provence, already??!!!), Colleen, our proprietor, and I have recently been slurping up as much wine (and food!) as we possibly could in the limited time we had in Provence and the southern Rhone. What a time…

In the course of events we had the opportunity to sit down with a few vintners over a way-indulgent meal and really get to talking. You just can’t beat sharing a meal for bringing out what people really want to talk about compared to the polite discourse of a winery visit.

Anyway, Colleen and I noticed that every owner, producer, distributor, whomever we talked to volunteered that the French really need to pull themselves out of the Dark Ages in terms of marketing and labeling. They believe that even the French find the labels too complicated to understand.

One vintner, Allan Wilson of Chateau St. Esteve de Neri, put it in terms that rang a very familiar bell with me. I was unaware that some quality producers have begun de-classifying themselves from the top-of-the-line AOC classification to “Vin de Pays” (three rungs down on the 4-rung French-classification ladder) in order to produce 100% varietal wines, or to blend as they please and very importantly, to put the varietal name on the label.

What this means, from a practical standpoint, is if they call the wine Cotes de Provence they are limited in their choice of grape varieties, viticultural and winemaking practices and may not put a varietal name on the label. So, they say “the heck with it” and de-classify either to express themselves artistically or have a fighting chance of selling it or both. They know that most new-world consumers, who they very much want as their customers, are going to walk in to their local retailers and ask for a Chardonnay or a Syrah and that it will be the exceptional consumer that asks for a Chateau d’I-can’t pronounce-this, from “Les-never-heard-of-it” vineyard.

The deal is, that unless you’re one of the top chateaux in whatever region, you’re probably having trouble moving your wine. It’s very ironic that the stratospheric price of 2005 Bordeaux futures from the top houses is the subject of outraged, incredulous debate while lesser known producers fight for shelf space and some AOC producers in Bordeaux are even having their wine converted into fuel. C’est terrible.

It’s complicated. The French are drinking less wine, for starters. The new world has flooded the market with attractive, well-made, very affordable wines and Spain and southern Italy are coming on strong as competitors. The dollar is weak compared to the euro making the competition yet more difficult.

I don’t think anyone believes it’s a quality issue. Every wine-producing region is guilty of putting out some yucky stuff, but the French no more than anyone else.

It seems the two main forces at work are government regulations regarding both production methods and labeling laws that may no longer serve the interest of the majority of French producers and complacence regarding marketing. Among some producers the attitude is that “it’s enough to be French” and that its reputation will carry the day.

That certainly wasn’t the opinion of any producers we met. If what we saw (and it was a handful of people) is a reflection of the general attitude among French vintners then you can expect to see big changes in the way French wine is marketed and perhaps labeled in the near future. I’m not talking about the great houses. But, there’s room for movement in the mid-price Vin de Pays, which make up a significant part of French production. The proposed changes will allow producers to be more responsive to their environment, consumer preference and market conditions.

Major problem: Some important regions, like Bordeaux and Burgundy don’t allow the Vin de Pays option. Probably a matter of pride. So, a war is brewing in an effort to change that. It’s not going to happen easily. And the INAO has promised to become more restrictive regarding labeling regulations, not less. If they have their way, you’ll be able to buy a wine called Chardonnay from the Languedoc, for instance, but not if it’s from Burgundy, it’s venerable home. Ouch! This makes my head hurt!

If the laws don’t change, you can bet the producers will. People always find a way. As Allan said, it’s already starting to happen. This whole de-classifying business sure brings to mind Tuscany in the 60s and 70s. Great producers like Antinori became frustrated with hand-tying DOC laws and just labeled their made-as-I-please wine Vino de Tavola. Of course, we now know them as Super-Tuscans and they get quite a premium for their “table wine.”

Some quality French producers have already gone that way. They source grapes, choose their varieties and blend almost as they see fit (within the Vin de Pays regulations for the region) and call it Vin de Pays or even Vin de Table. Of course, to get any kind of respect or remuneration for these wines the producer must have a fine reputation already. But these respected producers, as they were in Italy, are the trail blazers. Guess what’s happened in Italy since the Super-Tuscans came about? The laws have adjusted.

It would be fun to fast forward 10 or 15 years, to see what happens, but it should be interesting in the meantime. Stay tuned…

Points and Place

October 12, 2006 in Food & Wine and Wine. 0 Comments

As I wrote in our blog titled Culinary Getaways a la Provence, Colleen Topper, our proprietor, and I have been extremely fortunate and thrilled to have spent a week exploring the wine and food of Provence and the southern Rhone. Ah, the ever-expanding waistline! I’ve been going through the memories and can’t help noticing that we couldn’t get through a day without someone mentioning Robert Parker. We met with winemakers, brokers, chefs, food vendors and he was always there, lurking in the background (and sometimes the foreground). Intellectually, I have known that this American man has remarkable influence internationally, but it still caught me off guard to see it so clearly demonstrated. It’s almost as if you can’t talk about wine without talking about the “Emperor of Wine.”

Views were mixed. The charming producer/distributor we met with, Guy Bremond of Cave du Verger des Papes (a must-visit when you are in Chateauneuf-du-Pape - you can taste several brands and blends of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, many of them excellent, under one ancient roof), clearly loved Parker while serving and discussing the 2003 Chateau La Nerthe Cuvee des Cadettes, a wine which often receives upwards of 95 points depending on the vintage. For the other wines there was no mention of Parker, lovely as they were. In sales, he’s your friend when the score is over 90 and otherwise???

A chef who conducted a cooking class for us despaired of wines becoming too similar globally because of the influence of Parker and the Wine Spectator. He didn’t bring up the elephant in the room but Allan Wilson, the owner of Chateau St. Esteve de Neri, did when he commented that restaurants are beginning to push back regarding these high-alcohol, so-called “fruit bombs” with the high scores. While they may be attention getting, they don’t necessarily marry well with food and the chefs don’t like seeing their work out-shouted by wine on steroids. Since the wines we tasted were routinely 14-15%, I asked Allan if the wines of southern France are normally so high in alcohol, or if this is a recent trend. Guess what - it’s a trend. I wonder why?? And it’s easy for those producers in sunny southern France to respond to the trend. But what about cooler regions that really have to work for that unctuousness (or manipulate) to get the high scores? Are they betraying their terroir to make a sale? It’s a tricky equation.

Then Allan told a story about how a group of Master Sommeliers held a tasting of Merlot from several continents with a common denominator of Michel Rolland as the consulting winemaker. These highly-experienced tasters got it all wrong. They thought the Chilean wine was Bordeaux and the Italian example was from Napa Valley. Their terroir was Rolland. I fear that if the wines of the world lose their sense of place while chasing the scores and the sales it will be very hard to get it back.

If you’ve been following my conversation (”Great Wine by the Numbers?”) with Leo McCloskey, of Enologix, you can see that there’s lots of room for opinion on the subject, and re-reading the above comments, I realize my sentiments are apparent. It’s a tough nut. The wine writers absolutely have a right to their opinion and producers have the right to do what’s necessary to pay the bills. But, as a consumer, I hope that there will always be a place for great wines that embody that evocative sense of place. You know - you get a whiff of something that brings back a vivid memory. I look forward to the day when the scent of a white wine makes the beautiful memories of an ancient cave, a glass of Beaucastel Vielle Vignes and the smiles of the day come flooding back.

Q: Pinot Noir in a Box?

October 11, 2006 in Answers. 0 Comments

Question from Charles: I’m looking for a Pinot Noir that is boxed. Do you know of one?

Reply: Hi, Charles! Thank you for writing! Do you mean boxed as in wine-in-a-box? If so, you’ve posed a very challenging question. It’s really easy to find bottled Pinot Noir packed in wooden boxes, but to find it in the wine-in-a-box format is quite difficult. I searched through Bev-Mo’s site looking for Pinot Noir in a box because they have a large selection and represent a wide range of prices, but no luck. No luck with Cost Plus either.

It must exist for some brand somewhere (the Aussies are very big on bag-in-box), but Pinot Noir is a demanding variety and is rarely made into every day drinking wine. The majority of Pinot Noir is medium to high-end wine because it’s a low yielding variety and calls for finesse in the cellar. That profile isn’t very compatible with the bag-in-box market. You may have read that better and better wines are being packaged that way, but many high-end producers continue to resist due to potential image problems…

The good news is that following the Pinot-boom brought on by the movie “Sideways” there’s bee a lot more Pinot Noir planted and perhaps the price point will come down over the next few years.

I’m sure you’ve checked a supermarket. That would be my best guess for a way to track it down. Please let me know if you find any! Good luck, and cheers! Nancy

A Perfectly Balanced Day In Provence

October 10, 2006 in Food & Wine. 0 Comments

Talk about perfect symmetry! As I wrote earlier in the entry called Culinary Getaways a la Provencal, Colleen Topper, our proprietor, and I have been in Provence and the southern Rhone tasting our palates off. And I believe we’ve discovered one of the most decadent ways to be educated in sensory evaluation. What a way to make a living!

We were whisked away to Chateau St. Esteve de Neri in the Cotes de Luberon and I thought, great - tour and tasting. Mais non!! This was not a routine visit to a winery. The estate is owned by Allan and Alex Wilson, who must be two of the most gracious souls on the planet. Allan began by giving us a little test. Have you ever seen the Le Nez du Vin kit? It’s tons of fun. He had over a dozen vials from the kit, marked only by a number and our job was to identify the wine-related smells. You know… blackberry, smoke, cassis… It’s amazing to discover what you don’t know, when you don’t know. I’ll be straight with you… Colleen and I didn’t do too well in our jet-lagged and luggage-less condition (always an excuse, right?). Some aromas were really obvious and others were quite difficult.

I polled other members in our group later to double-check my own impressions - I love the kit, but in the countless times I’ve used it, I find that some of the samples aren’t very true to their source, which just means that even after the correct aroma was revealed, licorice still didn’t smell like licorice to me. Yup, they agreed. But that’s really not the point, and that’s why I recommend trying it. The point is to get your sensory wheels turning. It’s kind of like warming up before a marathon. That brief exercise served us well when it was time to taste the genuine article, the wine! The descriptors were flying around the room!

Next, Allan gave us a brief overview and tasting of the major French varieties. He covered the typical characteristics of the varieties and where in France they make their home. His selections were excellent representations of the type and he made it very fun and informative. I just kept wondering when we would taste St. Esteve de Neri? When comes the sales pitch?

Then it was time for a casual, but sumptuous Provencal-style lunch on their grounds (I believe Sherry probably pulled some strings to arrange this - it may not be generally available) during which we polished off the tasting wines and a few bottles of St. Esteve to boot! Yum….

What does this have to do with balance? Fast forward to the day’s end. We went back to the farmhouse to relax, and our huge lunch was balanced by a relatively light cheese and wine tasting with a Provencal-style (translates as “don’t spare the garlic!”) salad for dinner. But what was dessert? Incredible! Sherry had purchased a gorgeously colorful “cake” from a local glacier which was composed of pretty little balls of over 20 flavors of ice cream. You got it - guess the flavor! I must say that we, as a group, seemed to excel at this task. As it happened our group was all women, and just imagine turning a bunch of women loose on an ice cream cake! We were absolutely determined to identify those flavors, no matter the difficulty, and our perseverance paid off! That poor, lovely cake didn’t know what hit it. And our day came full circle.

I have to add a post-script. Later that week, Alex and Allan astounded us again, by coming to the farmhouse to taste the wines of the Cotes de Luberon. Again, well balanced: we went from the big picture, the whole of France, earlier in the week, to the micro-picture, the 7000-acre Luberon AOC, our final night. I’m happy to say that among the eight bottles we tasted, Allan included a delicious bottle of Chateau St. Esteve de Neri Grande Expression, a blend of Syrah, Grenache (they call it Grenache Noir in Provence) and Carignane, and finally, at our request, provided us with the name of his distributor here in the USA: the Tinamou Wine Company in Sonoma, California. Just e-mail twc1955@aol.com or call (800) 388-6390. Santé!!