No Wine Over $20-Reviews and the LA Wine Scene

BEST neighborhood wine shop in my neighborhood

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 10:12:40 -0800

Woodland Hills Wine Company sits on a lonely stretch of Ventura Boulevard populated by the West San Fernando Valley's spurious claims to exotic cuisine...from Dan's Super Subs to Exotic Thai to Topanga Pizza. Lonely stretch might be too kind. Except for a decent used book store and a pub that serves fairly decent English beers the 10 blocks between freeway exits is pretty desolate. [ed. sometimes you run into 3 - of 10 mind you - sisters out for some Saturday afternoon tasting] Then there is WHWC. A wine fiend's mecca. Founder Paul and son Kyle Smith have assembled the best collection of domestic and international wines in Southern California. I have been to every wine store from San Diego to Palm Springs to Paso Robles and there is no better selection for just about anything you might have on your radar. There are a few other stores that have more concentrated selections in certain regions but none with a better all round selection. If there is one store that gives WHWC a run for the money it is Hi Time Wine Cellars in Costa Mesa which has the same winning combo of informed sales staff and breathtaking breadth of choices. But they are 90 miles south and WHWC is maybe 3 miles east. WHWC hosts some very interesting tastings that range from the generic to the exceptional. Dotoré and tBoW recently attended the generic 2008 Oregon Pinot Noir tasting at the local emporium. Even when the staff runs a run-of-the-mill tasting like 2008 Oregon Pinot Noir they show good sense; they keep the cost down and show a handful of wines. Conversely, when they host a truly exceptional tasting such as wines from the Louis/Dressner or the Becky Wasserman catalogues they still hold down the entry price but not the selections. The first 2008 Oregon Pinot Noir report follows. 2008 Roots Willamette Valley Klee Pinot Noir $18: Second go round for this wine. About the same impression as with the 2007. Same label. Klee has lots of paintings. This one must be in the public domain. Chocolate nose which is not characteristic of Pinot Noir I recognize. Still it is not unpleasant. Wine is bit tight. Fruit s-l-o-w-l-y emerges. Still tight. Wonder how the 2009 will be? 13.7% 2008 Owen Roe Sharecroppers Pinot Noir $22: Sharper flavors. Fruit is more apparent. Rubbery flavor. Gets richer with time in the glass. In the end just too sweet. 14.2% 2008 Evening Land Pinot Noir $22: Smells and tastes like Pinot Noir. Forest floor funk. Nice nose worth inhaling over and over before even thinking of tastes. A step above the first two wines. Fruit and funk are balanced well. Like Earth Wind and Fire! Winery is in Orcutt California. Gets somewhat astringent with some time. THE STORY courtesy of our favorite Portland wine store Great Wine Buys: "The vineyard is considered one of Oregon's best (that's why Evening Land wanted it) but it needed work. After ripping out phylloxera-infested vines, they are replanting at a higher density, re-trellising and converting the whole vineyard to bio-dynamic farming. The consulting winemaker is none other than Dominique Lafon, an eyebrow-raising legend from Burgundy whose Meursault bottlings are an altar unto themselves for white Burg fans. The incredible care now being taken in the vineyard coupled with such amazing winemaking talent promises great wines to come, and it's an exciting beginning. This "blue label" bottling, their first release from 2008, is mostly Seven Springs fruit with a small amount acquired from "a few friends". Made in a relatively drink-now style." 13.4% 2008 Owen Roe Kilmore Pinot Noir $35: The premium Owen Roe bottle on this day. Muted nose but flavors are very high tone. reminds me of the Bergstrom wines from Ribbon Ridge. Elegant and still with some power. Good fruit present. Sweet-ish. 14% 2008 Ken Wright Freedom Hill $40: This is the big ticket highly touted wine so we are expecting big things. Thank you Mr. sales rep. Excellent nose of forest floor and vanilla. Plenty fruit but not sweet! Thank you. Rich with coca flavors. Extra rich flavors in the mouth. 14% BONUS Oregon Pinot Noir... 2007 J Christopher Dundee Hills Cuvee Pinot Noir $27: Had this one shipped in from Portland by Great Wine Buys, favorite wineshop in the city and representing local wines very well. Ask for Murray. This is what we fell in love with in May 2009. Satin smooth with some weight but still light to middle. Great balance of fruit and funk. Easy going down. Tastes like well made Oregon Pinot Noir. More more more. A very good wine for a reasonable price. 13.5% The tBoW tasting team will be making our own journey to the Willamette Valley in May so you can look forward to thorough 2008 Oregon Pinot Noir reporting in a few months looking for the 2008 Pinot Noir from Dewey Kelly. In the meantime, Mr. and Mrs. tBoW will be driving through Mendocino and plan to stop in at several Pinot palaces along the way.

BEST vineyard view in Malibu

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 03:04:21 -0800

You can see Positano from Don Schmitz's vineyard 2100 feet above Malibu. Not many peaks are higher than his. He planted 1 acre of Cabernet Sauvignon on the South, West and North slopes surrounding the hilltop with 1200 vines where his 7,000 square foot home is going up. The scene is nothing less than spectacular. Dotoré posited it is the single most incredible home site he has ever seen in Los Angeles; in person or photos. And what about the man? He makes no claim to being a winemaker. He is a vintner whether he admits to that or not. The Solstice label is his conception with a strong influence from George Rosenthal of Rosenthal-The Malibu Estate who Schmitz identifies as mentor. Rosenthal makes quite a few wines from his estate grown and sourced grapes a few miles to the east. Where Rosenthal has a Malibu Hills vineyard (some 90 to 100 acres) Schmitz has one acre in a spot where he has a wall to wall coastal view but is above the fog so he gets some of the Hills heat. It would seem to be an ideal location for Cabernet. Why only Cabernet Don? Because Cab is King. Schmitz selected the site carefully. He did not pick it for the opportunity to grow vinifera BUT, once the site was secured, he did have the soil and water analyzed for suitability to grow wine grapes. He got good news and planted in 1997. His first vintage was in 2001 and he has bottled in every year since. He harvests and immediately transports the grapes to the Daumé facility in Camarillo also known as Camarillo Custom Crush. Apparently, this is the go-to winemaking facility for many of the new local Malibu vintners. Schmitz hires a vineyard manager and, like so many other locals, uses the Daumé winemaker. Don says each vintage is different and he likes that about the wines because every year the intense fruit from his vines shows through. Don does reserve all decision-making when it comes to barrel selection. He frowns on using too much oak and prefers neutral French oak which means he likes to use barrels that have been though several vintages. So how are the wines? Our host brought a 2004 and 2006 Solstice from the cellar on the promontory facing North. We pulled the corks on those two and a bottle we had brought, the 2007 Paul Lato Larner Vineyard Syrah. 2004 Solstice Cabernet Sauvignon $36: We covered this recently. Same ripe fruit flavors in the nose and the mouth. No we did not snort the wine. It is just that ripe. The ripeness of the fruit is attributable to long hang time. Don told us as much. Neutral oak lets the fruit run wild! 13.8% 2006 Solstice Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve $50: More stuffing than the 2004. Also more blue than red fruit, as in blueberries. Still fairly ripe and unbridled fruit. Bigger yet relatively soft and plump. 14.2% 2006 Paul Lato Larner Vineyard Syrah Cinemathique $80: Undrinkable. What happened to Paul Lato wines? He went Hollywood Santa Rita style. Happens to so many out-of-towners who come to SoCal and get star struck. In this case it seems Paul decided he would make wine like everyone else in Santa Rita Hills: bombastic, over the top alcohol and fruit that Parker gives his biggest scores to. Natch this wine hit the mid 90s. Four days later it was still trying to pry itself open. This wine could test the limits of the aerator. 15% So what about the Solstice wines? There is potential to make a distinctive and wonderful wine of sophistication with verve that is distinctly Malibu. But we think that wine is hidden under too many layers of fruit upon fruit. The character and unique qualities seem lost. We have a strong-willed vintner who routinely scraps with California's toughest environmental protection group, the Coastal Commission. And he wins more often than not or at least often enough to actually be sitting atop Malibu in his own Xanadu. He has more acreage that could be planted with the right permits and a few more commissionary scrapes. We hope he plants Cab Franc, Merlot, Petite Verdot and blends it in Solstice. We hope he tries new oak and tells his winemaker he would like to evoke more of the mountain qualities of his vines instead of allowing the fruit to overwhelm the wine like so many weeds in the vineyard. We hope...we hope we visit Don again when his home is finished. Next time we'll bring a Napa Cab like Regusci or even Hess...or Ridge...doesn't have to be Monte Bello.

Super Bowl: Game Tops Wines in a Close One

Sun, 14 Feb 2010 09:29:18 -0800

[ed. everything RIGHT with the Super Bowl in one image] For the third year in a row the Super Bowl presented a pretty good football game that managed to outshine the wine selections. We usually expect the wine selections for a Super Bowl to be slightly more entertaining than the game. The whole mishpokhe surrounding the game is far too familiar to expect anything other than an ordinary game, ordinary food and and ordinary wine menu. Mrs. IGTY made sure the cioppino was exceptional and Mr. IGTY did his best to make sure we opened some big hitters. Dotoré ensured swift justice prevailed. [ed. everything WRONG with the Super Bowl in one image] This year we hoped for more from the wines and the teams. Both featured crowd favorites so all signals pointed to a decent afternoon. Now more about everything RIGHT with the Super Bowl...this time... 1998 Rochioli River Block Chardonnay $??: Oak on the nose and in the mouth right away, quickly joined by butterscotch flavors reminiscent of the best aged white Burgundies [ed. a 1979 Domaine Leflaive Chassagne Montrachet came to mind]. Still young showing tannins but rich and refined. Quite Burgundian moreso than the Pinot Noir wines from Rochioli. The thought crosses the mind that perhaps Rochioli produces more spectacular and approachable Chardonnay than Pinot Noir. Beautiful. Side note: Rochioli wines are simply out of range price-wise for anyone but the most fervent and fevered collectors. We are lucky to have enough back logged to keep rendering opinions on whether the wines at least deserve the hype if not the price. This one sure did. Anytime a California Chardonnay recalls a Grand Cru Burgundy it is notable. But if I was spending $160 on a Chardonnay it would be a 20 year old Burgundy. 14% 2003 Foxen Sea Smoke Pinot Noir $100+: The game chugs along and we have all winners except the lone loser so the host pops this rare bottle (230 cases, first vintage)>. Foxen was instrumental in helping Sea Smoke establish itself and in return Foxen receives the only outside allocation of Sea Smoke juice on an annual basis. And what do they do with it? They make a Pinot Noir without the fussy attention that strips Sea Smoke the label of character and terroir; a strategy that works very well to please a strong following of trophy hunters. Of course, all Sea Smoke wines are anointed by the Wine Speculator. In fact, Sea Smoke the label nd Foxen's version appear to be quite different. This bottle is a monster wine that tastes like Bourbon. The wine is lean and rich. It has the sweet aroma and flavors of sour mash whiskey. File it under the growing file named "just-cuz-it-says-Pinot-don't-mean-it-is"! As Mouse might say, a great young Chateuaneuf du Pape! 14.% 2000 Williams Selyem Rochioli Riverblock Pinot Noir $fuggedaboudid: Sharp,lean with high tone fruit. Pretty serious for Williams Selyem. Dark fruit with sweet beet flavors. Intense and integrated nicely. Not your typical W-S. Like it a lot. 14.3% 1996 Esmonin Ruchotte-Chambertin Grand Cru $50 (release price): This is a Grand Cru vineyard in a very good year that should produce a fantastic example of French Pinot Noir at its top. Except it sucked. Unfortunately, this cohort of 95-96 Esmonin bottles, all purchased at the same time, have pretty much sucked. This one is kind of pretty and very delicate when opened, only to immediately fall into a psychotic state faster than Amy Winehouse slipping off a stage. Or Sarah Palin talking foreign policy. Or Larry Kudlow calling the end of the recession. But we regress. The fruit disappeared and the woody flavors emerged. Totally out of whack. Never again for this producer. 13.5% 2003 Paul Lato Duende Gold Coast Pinot Noir $50: Second vintage of the winemaker now widely regarded as the top guy in the Central Coast. Why? He makes wines that, at least in his earliest vintages, were lighter in alcohol and more restrained in style. This may be changing in later vintages but not it was still the case in 2003. This is the antithesis of the Foxen wine. Gentle, beautifully balanced, light weight. Perfect in many ways. Hard to find a flaw. Parker ratings have steadily climbed up one point a year since this bottle. Honestly, it is embarrassing to watch the world's most widely read taster try to scramble to catch up with what was obvious to tasters unburdened with the weight of supreme authority who first came across Paul Lato, and his 75 cases of first release, humble and much ignored, wines at the Wine Cask 2004 tasting. Lato's skill was obvious. His light handed style stood in stark contrast to the fruit bombs that littered the adjacent tables throughout. tBoW is sitting on a bunch of Syrahs from 2005 and 2006 which Parker rated very highly; higher than the PNs which suggests a somewhat desperate maneuver to stake out "discovery" territory for the obvious darling of the scene...Parker having missed the first Lato go round. When Parker likes your wines it maybe good for sales (which is always good for wineries) but it is generally the bacio del morte for tBoW readers. Some jaundiced words on Wine Spectator ratings....tBoW read recently that a Parker 93 is now considered ordinary and only wines rated 95 and higher deserve the attention of the serious trophy wine hunter. Is this a kind of inflation? It takes more points than ever to fire the imaginations of the "look-what-I-got" crew. Such folly is inevitable when a "100 point" scale that starts at 93 and ends at 100 is only 7 points. The "hunnerd" part is just for all those wonderful people out there in the dark! The science behind the 100 point rating scale is explained here in this fabulous clip from Gloria the Wine Critic.

Thus Spracht Der Pinot Mouse

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 08:18:19 -0800

[ed. always an enlightening treat when featured field reporter Mouse tells a story about an evening circling the globe without leaving his chair] On a cold Connecticut evening, ten people gathered to seek the Pinot. No longer elusive, as it was in the 1980s, this once fickle grape makes good wine in many places. In fact, this was our goal, to go around the globe with Pinot Noir, the most feminine and enticing of all wine. I mean, really, if you had one wine to drink, what would it be? [ed. PINOT PINOT PINOT...NOIR] Our target areas were two Burgundian Cotes, California, Oregon, New Zealand, Chile, Australia and South Africa. Missing, in earnest, was Austria, a country whose reds are vastly underappreciated here. But that's for another day. One note before our plane takes off: if you are going to taste Pinot, don't upset her and put her alongside showy varietals like Cab, Syrah or Sangiovese. Let her be, or she'll politely put on her nightie, go to her room and lock the door. She wants your sole attention. Oh, the jet turbines are running....... Flight One: A Brick and a Slam Dunk 2007 Veranda Vineyard Pinot Noir Bio Bio Valley Chile $17 2007 Hamilton Russell Vineyards Walker Bay Pinot Noir Hemel en Aarde Valley South Ef-Reh-Ka $46: 13.3% Let's get the night's lemon out of the way. The Bio Bio was pooey pooey. Scott, my chum for the night, said he thought he tasted minerals but he was sure he found brick. Tasted the chrome on my dad's 1960 Buick LeSabre Convertible. I was nervous; did these people come to my house for naught? Should I be spanked for trusting the drooling salesman who claimed it would stand up to a night of class pinots? No mice. No stinking mice. Oooooo. Ahhhhh. The land of ruggers provided a treat. The crowd favorite. Scott found all-spice and smoke. I tasted plum. No longer cheap, Hamilton Russell makes great pinots and chard. Perfect balance. I recall the mid '90s, when apartheid was lifted and the wines started to become more accessible. Meerlust Estate wines and this label were about $12. Unknown and unreal. Still, South Africa is somewhat exotic here. Find a semi-sweet Steen, their names for Chenin Blanc. Yummo. Anyway, when we let the natives loose on the eight bottles when dinner was served, this Hamilton Russell lasted eight seconds. Two very happy mice. Flight Two: Loring Extract and a Cote de Disappointment 2006 Pali Wine Company Momtazi Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon $25 (discounted): 14.9% 2005 Dominique Mugneret Nuit-St-Georges les Fleurieres Cote de Nuit, Burgundy, France $60: 13% Louise loved the Loring. Why? Louise would prefer to drink dark ink if it had alcohol. Loring, a fine, kind man, makes Pinot that the French would not understand. I barely do. I mean, I like it, but it's not Pinot; it's a young Chateauneuf-du-Pape. [ed. forgive tBoW for linking to post on very same subject] He grinds the grapes and turns the run-off into gout de grenache. Tasty, but Pinot? Oak, sweet, deep brambleberry. Pali and Loring have gone their separate ways, and I think it's due to his style, which is better kept on his LWC label. But, a real nice guy who'll mail you a replacement wine without question if you didn't like the first one. 1.5 mice, because even though it was not Pinot, it was good. Mugngeret, like Morey and Gagnard, is a common surname in the Burgundy. I had never tried anything from Dominique, and probably won't ever again. This was the most expensive bottle of the night. It was opened hours earlier. Without food, this wine didn't open and even with the lamb stew, its fruit had to be coaxed out. I got a little violet, like a Barolo from an off year. Scott thought it was nuanced but not in balance. Maybe this Pinot was pissed that it had to share the spotlight with so many neophytes. Whatever. It was why people don't buy Pinot. And 2005 is supposed to be the vintage of the decade? Whatever. OK, I should have spent another paycheck for a Premier Cru. Oh, Madame Burgundy, I try to love you but you make fun of me before my friends. A mouse, squeak squeak, step on me, crunch me. [ed. man up! no mouse for you! Becky Wasserman offers interesting background on this particular Mugneret house] Flight Three: A Big Surprise and a Regular, Dependable Joe (Rochioli) 2007 Drystone Berridge Family Vineyard Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand 2004 Rochioli Estate Russian River Pinot Noir California Best flight of the night. The NZ effort, purchased for $20 from wtso.com, blew me away. Totally in balance, tasting like a five-year-old Pinot, grassy in a good way, cola, Pennsylvania cherry - I could go on. Alert: forego Marlborough Pinot and search for the Otago, which are now streaming into the States. A crowd favorite. Two mice. Perhaps stingy, but there were no absolute show stoppers that night. I have long loved the wines of Rochioli, introduced to me years back by the blogmeister. He has since soured on them (price?), but I find them ever so true to the varietal, whether it be Pinot, Chard or Sauvignon Blanc. This version tasted like the previous Drystone, just amped up with a steroidal kick. But not Loringesque. Deep, brooding, but spices and peaches popping out here and there. Definitively California, and making no apologies. Two mice. [ed. tBoW prefers Skewis from same area, less $$, posted Jan 30 this year on same bottle!] Flight Four: A True Bargain and, Did I Tell You How Much I Love Burgs? 2006 Vincent Girardin Volnay Vieilles Vignes, Cote De Beanie, Burgundy, France $55 2008 Mosquito Hills Southern Flourier Pinot Noir, Adelaide Hills, Australia $22 Oh, how I adore Burgundy, the only place where Pinto reaches its true zenith, the only terroir that can coax the true subtleties from this unfathomable grape. Ah, Burgundy, where the modest little farmers, dressed in their bib overalls, hold the secret to the world's most enticing flavor. Can I ever try anything else. Ma is non! OK, you get the point. But this was good, and a great example of the Burgundy paradox when paired with the previous entry. Grading is one great negotiation, BTW. Volnay, always shy and often sexy, showed her silhouette here in a most generous way. Dex sour is. As for the malaria wine, it was darn yummy. Our taste buds were quite exhausted, but Scott and I were impressed by this $15 wtso.com offering. It was large, but nuanced and certainly tasted like Pinot Noir. More and more Australian Pinots are heading this way, and while I haven't had a great one, I've some very decent bottles. Like this one, with its raspberry-root beer complexity. 1.5 mice. There it is. A Pinot night. Not meant to show who makes the best wine, just a little tour. For the record, if you bet the trifecta, go with the Burgundy/Russian River/New Zealand ticket. Cheers! [ed. Here are a couple links to other Mouse field reports: Rieslings and Burgs from Aug 09 and Itals plus a Martinelli PN from Jan 09]

New(ish) Tasting Bar in Santa Monica - Pourtal Report

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 09:31:17 -0800

One 2009 mega-trend (mega trends being mega trendy) - new local tasting establishments - (El Vino in Venice, 55 Degree in Atwater Village) has come to Santa Monica. Actually tBoW is a bit behind the 8-ball here since Pourtal opened in April 2009. [ed. call us hokey using their web image but it works] We visited the wine tasting bar in January to taste a couple more Malibu wines. Pourtal hosted a Malibu winery series in January. Maybe they will do it again! Of course, some of the Malibu wines are available for tasting any time...because Pourtal has three Enomatic tasting machines. Each machine is geared to a theme such as international, zins and mixed bag. The Enomatic keeps the open bottle fresh using an inert gas to defend against oxidation. tBow first encountered this remarkable machine in Napa circa 2005. A new tasting bar called Stave was the first US retailer to bring the machine made in Italy to the US. We liked the concept then and are pleased to see it has made it to LA. If you think oxidation can be deterred by simply keeping the bottles in the refrigerator then take a 15 time out before resuming this review. The Abronson family owns and operates Pourtal. Turns out they were inspired by the now defunct Stave project. Times are very tough in Napa so we hope Pourtal finds success in our neighborhood. Pourtal is located where Santa Monica Blvd meets Pacific at the park overlooking the ocean. This first block is crammed with cool eating spots and typical bars including the World Famous Ye Olde Kings Head which I see now has a gift shop. If you like to drink British beers and watch soccer with Brit ex-pats then get on down to Ye Olde Kings Head. We presume YOKH is still a good meet market. However, if you want to taste a lot of very interesting international or domestic wines then hit Pourtal right next door. I cannot say whether it is a good meet market but you can always just slide over to YOKH if you catch a buzz and an inclination. Pourtal revolves around four tasting stations where one can self-dispense one ounce tastes of wines from a selection of 40 bottles>. You purchase a "smart card" with a read/write chip, setting your own spending limit. tBoW went for $20. Cost per taste varies according to the bottle. For example, the 2005 Dominus will take $8.80 out of your credit line [ed. and still be tight and not ready]. What makes Pourtal interesting from purely a wine snob perspective is the range of wines available for tasting. This is, of course, a function of the wit, energy and knowledge of the wine director. That would be Ms. Rachel Bryan. Rachel brings solid credentials and the perfect palate to Pourtal. She has worked as sommelier in New York City and Los Angeles restaurants, She has also worked retail in one of NYC's premium wine shops, Chambers. So she knows wine. Proprietor Stephen Abronson loves wine but admittedly is not the total wine freak. However, he knew to hire Rachel. Together they select the monthly wine themes. The wine importers and distributors follow Rachel wherever she lands because who else will buy their most unusual international selections. And that is the point of Pourtal: where else can the wine-curious find answers to what is coming out of the Israeli or Croatian wine scenes? That makes Pourtal at least a monthly wine stop on tBoW's calendar. Coming up in the months ahead? Island Wines (Sicily, Canary, Mallorca, New Zealand), Funky Reds [ed. the Isaac Hayes to the James Brown of wines? We'll go just for the DJ], Top Eco-Wineries (Alma Rosa, Cade, Stoller, Bonny Doon). Wine is so much more than Parker ratings! We visited Pourtal to learn about the operation and to taste wines poured by premium Malibu vintners Hoyt and Schetter. But we missed the tasting. You have to wait for another mega-Bu report to read about the Malibu part of the evening's program. However, coverage of Pourtal's outstanding international selection - such that one just does not see elsewhere - especially by the glass, follows. 2006 Teliani Valley Khvanchkara, Lechkhumi, Republic of Georgia $22: It's from Georgia; not the Atlanta Georgia; the former Soviet Socialist Republic state. Many of us do not realize that every one of those Central/Eastern euro nations has a long standing wine producing tradition. Like the Hungarian Tokay Aszu with its putonyos. Under Communism the tradition fell on hard times. We could speculate on why this was but we will not...except to say...never mind. The label on this wine says "semi-sweet red wine." I have heard semi-sweet is the preferred style for this part of Europe. Reputedly this was Stalin's favorite wine served to Churchill and Roosevelt at Yalta. Lots of acid here and sticky sweet juice. I am thinking this would probably go well with unfiltered cigarettes. All right. Cheap shot. This is a premium growing region that claims at least 15 aboriginal wine varietals. [ed. but are they vinifera?] and it is quite possible we may be seeing more wines from Georgia. It is often the case the best wines from a new region come later after the cheap ones have ruined all expectations. 12.5% 2008 Attila Gere Villány Portugieser $13: Light weight wine that is well-made if a bit thin. Think Julie Haggerty; like the great comedic actress the wine is quite enjoyable if not inspiring. If tBoW was traveling in Transylvania and saw a bottle he would buy it. 12.5% 2007 Bouza Tannat $37: This wine holds special interest because Tablas Creek produces a Tannat wine which is another good reason to follow TC. Hardy by reputation and certainly big and brawny from Paso Robles, tBoW was anxious to see what kind of Tannat is produced in Uruguay at the Bouza Bodega outside Montevideo across the strait from Buenos Aires. The nose is high toned and lofty. Restrained. Flavors are pleasant. Cannot taste the alcohol which is at Central Coast level. Not as ripe as the TC rendition. We like it. Solid middle weight. 15% 2007 Flam Classico $34: A blend of Cabernet and Merlot from the Judean Hills in Israel. Distinctive and appealing nose of charcoal and anise. A very good effort. Strong flavors, not too ripe. Fleshy. I would prefer this to many domestic blends. These last two wines were excellent ones to finish with. Chabad's house wine? Brought in by Israeli Wine Direct. 14% This was a very fun tasting evening. Unusual wines that show how things are changing all over the world. All for $20. Big tBow stamp of approval. Got to thinking about Julie Hagerty and found this wonderful and memorable scene from Lost in America. Maybe we did not give her sufficient credit. Imagine how tough it is to have your name constantly misspelled!

New Lineup for 2010

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 22:25:29 -0800

The ocean of wine and the lineup in it keeps getting bigger. We choose wines like we would choose waves; certain size, as close to perfect conditions as we can presume. What wines will be in the tBoW lineup for 2010? [ed. the surfing lineup is all those people in the water here at Topanga point trying to catch the same wave] With seemingly limitless options we contemplate the wine lineup for the coming year. Keep it simple - good values, great and interesting wines, selecting carefully from the best of the best. Based on the first pours in January we can forecast that Winter through early Spring will feature French white wines and more Malibu discoveries. We can live with that. The local vintners of the Bu continue to defy expectations and definitely have our attention. Here then are several recent turns of the corkscrew. 2005 Malibu Vineyard Rambla Pacifico Pinot Noir $35: Another pretty darn good Pinot Noir from the coastal hills up Pacific Coast Highway on the way to the best surfing beaches in north LA county. The story is owner Michael McCarty (of the venerable dining establishment Michaels) planted Cabernet Sauvignon grapes in the late 1980s with displeasing results. The vines were torn out and replaced with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The wine in this bottle is a bit rustic with a sense of terroir which in tBow-speak means it does not taste like a fruit bomb from the Central Coast. That is good. It has ripe cherry flavors putting in the Volnay style class. No forest floor here. Solid middle weight viscosity and very drinkable. Price is fair and alcohol level is acceptable. Of course, we cannot help but compare it to the Malibu Sanity Hills wine. They are different; think Old World vs New World. Very good effort, worth seeking out and comparing over the years to come as each wine develops its personal style. 2004 Solstice Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon $36: One of the earliest vintages from this well regarded vintner. The retailer said some bottles are bad so you can bring it back. But some are really good. This was a good one. Fruit is ripe but not jammy plump and all stuffed up. Raspberry flavors, light to middle weight. Has a quick finish. Reminds me of a New World Syrah. How did he keep the alcohol below 14? We would drink this again before trying one of the endless Napa Cabs at or near the same price now seeking shelter on winestilsoldout.com 13.8% A few words about the Dean of Malibu wine country, John Selman, who runs Malibu Village Wine Shop in the shopping bazaar off PCH across from Surfrider Beach. This shop is like walking into one of the homes on the Hoarders series. Cases on top of cases, tasting notes hanging like tinsel on my Xmas tree, and a decorative collection of vodkas in the far corner. John knows where everything is in the store and he knows even more about who is growing what and why in the hills of the Bu. Prices are very fair, selection is tops if you want to try the best Bu wines, and the conversation is stellar. Any visit to Malibu wine country should start and/or end at this shop. 2006 Chantemerle Chablis La Chantemerle $20: Always been a Chablis fan. The style is generally steely, lean, fresh. When exaggerated these qualities come off foxy even feline; but not here. Hope to drink more French Chardonnays like this one in 2010. Because Chablis is generally under-valued, it is actually a good region to watch for great values. [ed. dreams of $25 Gran Crus danced through his head!] This is ordinary Chablis with a few years on it. Decent price. Nice and simple. Balanced, light to mid weight. Refined with pear flavors. Showing some tannins. It ain't New World Chard. Is that all we care about? Well, not all we care about...but it counts. xx% 2004 Rochioli Estate Pinot Noir $60: Accompanied the Saints-Vikings game. Can I compare the wine to Brett Favre? [ed. should you?] Over the top. Intense, Iron fist in a velvet glove stuff. Focused but not BIG. And ultimately, a miss more than a hit. "Too many notes." The point is Rochioli wines do seem to over-reach for the heights in the most obvious and nearly bombastic style. Like Favre they are legendary and produce incredible hits. But they also make some very ill-timed boo-boos. This wine was big enough to overwhelm the cigar I smoked between games. It is muscular, supple, with solid flavors. Concentrated. I can taste the alcohol which is never good. And it tastes a lot like a California Syrah from the Central Coast. 14.8% 2006 Bret Brothers Pouilly-Fuisse Climat Le Clos Reyssie $34: Purchased at Woodland Hills Wine Co. Two French brothers named Bret (not Favre) began making their own wines in 2000. They own a vineyard AND buy grapes. This wine has a sinewy feel. Lean. Green and chalky flavors. The vineyard source - Le Clos Reyssié - is the most famous holding in the village of Chaintré which is one of the four villages producing Pouilly-Fuissé. [ed. tBoW lifted this from the Bret Bros website] This wine comes from a 60 year old plot on rather deep soil on a vein of very hard limestone. Makes me think this is what Cakebread wants to taste like but never will. And this is half that cost. We like it. We also noted the distributor Polaner Selections who reps several labels we also like including Clos de la Roilette and Didier Dagueneau. Keep an eye out for Polaner. Love the low alcohol level. 12.5% Here is another example of what the Malibu Coastline can produce given very good conditions.

2009 Holiday odds and ends, part 2

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:31:33 -0800

Yessirree. We caught some bigguns over the Holiday. We also learned what to serve with paella...Spanish wines. Chad - sales guy extraordinaire from local emporium Woodland Hills Wine Co - played Santa's elf and made sure we chose the right wines. We embellished with a couple sweeties and some cheeses only a Mouse would know about. All is reported below. This entry finishes the review of wines tasted over the 2009 Christmas and New Year holiday. Looking back, it must have been pretty good. This set was tasted under one roof on the same evening. 2001 Viña Busconia $32: Tempranillo from Rioja. We do not have that many Spanish wines but the hostess served paella so...The wine was extraordinary. Delicate, lightweight as some Riojas can show. Leather up front then pure red fruit. Polished wine. Very impressive. A great match to the food. [ed. New year resolution: more Spanish wines]. 13% 1990 Viña Tondonia Reserva $40: Same producer as above, R. Lozes Heredia Viña Condrian. Both bottles were wrapped in that light gold colored, Catholic memory, cross hatch wire. Not impressive at first. Kind of flat and waxy. 15 minutes later it was the best complement to the paella. Grapes are Viria and Malvasia. Shows tropical flavors like pineapple and lychee. Won the tBow palme d'or that evening. 13% 1994 Kopke Port $19 (on release 1997): A lesser house from the major region. Port remains fairly unfashionable. Like bow ties you have to love them to indulge. This is spicy at 16 years, with hint of cilantro, nutty flavors like filbert, and red fruit. Just terrific. 20% 2005 Royal Tokayi 5 Putonyos $20: A bargain bin purchase from winecommune.com. More apricots but these are sweet and rich. The wine is young so there is also a steely quality that keeps it live. Somebody in a swoon says "like a first kiss." [ed. New year resolution: spend more time on winecommune.com] 19%

2009 holiday odds and ends, part 1

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 09:55:55 -0800

The NFL playoffs is a good mark for looking back on the holiday season. Like the San Fernando Valley from the Top of Topanga after a big wind, the holiday wine landscape is suddenly brilliantly clear. Landmarks stand out so much better once the air clears. So much wine flows during the Christmas-New Year there just is not enough room to cover it all in one post. Here is the first of two. 2005 Fitou Bel Armant Chateau Champ des Souers $15: Toffee nose. Have covered this twice before on this blog. And we still like it! Very appealing flavors, soft, vanilla, fruity juice. Balanced. A Becky Wasserman import, a U20 wine, and one of her personal faves. Here is hoping we see more recent vintages. 13.5% 2004 Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel $39: This cork got pulled during the tBoW Xmas Affair. To the winemaker's credit the well-wined crowd immediately slowed their conversations and took notice. Nice! Hardy wine. Agrarian?? Sophisticated and showing very nicely at such a youthful age. Kudos to Jason Haas. This series is destined to be the house mark. 14.5% 2003 Chateau Redortier Gigondas $19: After the more innocent party-goers had guzzled another glass of delicious juice our guest posed the $100 question "how do you know what to buy?" This is a compliment and the clearest recognition we are pouring nice wines that represent great value. The answer is "buy the importer like this one who is Robert Chadderdon". This is Syrah dark and with a dirty nose. We reject the bret option because there is also pepper and the fruit in the mouth is pure. As the wine opens the dirty nose blows off and the deep dark Syrah flavors get richer and deeper. Excellent wine. 14% [ed. lacking label images we turn to pro football images and analogies] 2008 Cortese Frizzante Dell Alto Monferrato Terredicino $13: Don't you just love it when a guest brings an unexpectedly wonderful wine? This is Miles Austin of Italian white wines, completely surprising and far exceeding expectations. Not really spectacular but so dependable he could become your go-to-wine. Let's not get carried away. Biletnikoff he ain't but he does a pretty good impression. The wine is stone dry, bone dry and fizzy. Flinty like a musket barrel. It is very refreshing and the price is so good the guest very thoughtfully brought an extra bottle! 12% 2004 August Kesseler Rudesheimer Berg Roseneck Riesling Spatlese $40: The best wide receivers can turn a game around in one play. This wine, like Randy Moss, is highly touted, has an oily feel and telltale petrol nose. There was much talk about Randy stinking up the Patriots with his pouty aroma around mid-season. He turned up at season's end only to disappear in the Big Game. This Riesling has apricot flavors but not too sweet nor high acid. The same bottle was brought to a different party where it also showed well. But has the showy and much admired wine, like Moss, started its inevitable downward slide? 10.5% 2007 Domaine de L'Ancienne Mercerie Faugères $17: Imported by Peter Weygandt which is always a good signal. Dark, brooding chocolate flavors. Mostly Syrah, medium weight, exactly what we like from the Languedoc region at this price point. 15% Next week conference championships and a chance for Dotoré to get some playoff pool redemption and start the March to find his Mojo.

Malibu Wine Country...no more jokes

Sat, 09 Jan 2010 09:38:04 -0800

"You have to significantly exceed expectations" said the Malibu winemaker without showing the slightest sign he was jumping verticals; going from the world of C-level business consulting to the world of wine in all its perplexing wierdness. "Every year we will eliminate error." For example? He planted his vines with the guidance of a very capable viticulturist. When the grapes came in at alcohol levels he considered too high he realized he needed a combination viticulturist-slash-enologist. Now he is working with someone who fits that job description. The winemaker and vintner is Charles Schetter. He makes a Pinot Noir named Malibu Sanity with grapes grown on his sloping one acre vineyard in his backyard at 650 feet elevation above Paradise Cove. The wine is remarkable. At least so said IGTY and tBoW however Dotoré was skeptical, as is his job. So we carried 3 bottles of what we consider to be premium Pinot Noir up to the vineyard and surprised Mr. Schetter with an impromptu blind tasting, bags and all. First we had some conversation. There is only one other vintner growing Pinot Noir in the Bu but Mr. Estevez does not sell it. There are several vintners who are serious about their winemaking although one can only pray they are as serious about it as Schetter. He took a 3 day "intensive" UC Davis course to learn the chemistry and other basics about planting, growing harvesting, making wine, selecting and managing barrels. He studied up on "degree days" which is a power index for the growability of vinifera. His vineyard has an excellent degree days quotient. Perhaps even more importantly, Schetter has a point of view when it comes to Pinot Noir. He has collected Pinot Noir for decades, beginning under the tutelage of Kermit Lynch and staff when he lived and worked in Berkeley. If he could drink one Burgundy commune it would be Chambolle. He manages 98% of all vineyard chores from grafting to pruning to canopy philosophy coddling every cordon. His guiding thought on pricing his wine? "Check your ego and bullshit at the door." The following four wines were tasted blind in order. 2006 Williams Selyem Russian River Valley: Sweet, perfumed. Luscious. Has to be the Burgundy! Unbagged, this is the typical W-S flavor profile. Immediately seductive, always delicious. A blend of six vineyards including two from RR! 14.3% 2008 Malibu Sanity Schetter VIneyard: Very different nose than the first wine. Similar color to the others, light red, young. More bacon bits and stuffing. Unbagged it is very impressive and also a popular pour. 14.8% 2006 Paul Lato Gold Coast Duende Pinot Noir: Stinky nose, flat flavors, doughy nose. Finishes nice. Mistaken for the Williams Selyem. Was the least favored of the first three wines when bagged. Unbagged and with time this wine grew quite lovely. 14.5% 2006 Domaine des Croix Beaune Les Bressandess: Minty nose, little darker in color. Most tannic of bagged wines. Long finish, alcohol flavor but balanced. Unbagged it falls behind the other three as those wines seemed to improve more noticeably. 13% We toured the vineyards in the rain and mud. Loved that. Really. I returned a couple days later in the new year to take the photos. However, on Dec 30 we could have been in the Cote d'Or. When we returned, Schetter opened a 1990 Chambolle-Musigny by Berthaud. The wine was stupendous. At 19 years it still shows lots of promise. Barnyard and fruit aromas and flavors. A mouthful of wildly diverse, sophisticated, enchanting Pinot Noir. He and a crew harvested the 2008 fruit in early October before dawn, packed it in dry ice, then drove it straight to the Terravant facility in Camarillo. Local winemakers who are "upshifting" their game favor this facility. The 2009 vintage will top the 2008, he believes in part because he used a different pruning technique. Eliminating error. We discuss the differences between inland versus coastal sites which now seem so obvious. He shares that the New York Times recently visited Malibu looking into this new Malibu Wine Country thang. They took pictures and plan to publish a report in the Spring Travel section. Makes you wonder what all the fuss is about? Now you know. Look for Malibu Sanity wines. He makes a steel fermented Chardonnay, as well. [ed. view south from Kanan Dume Road puts the Schetter hillside vineyard in perspective]

A savage decade saved by Barolo

Sat, 02 Jan 2010 17:16:26 -0800

Before we get started with the new year let us reflect on the wine trends of 2009. [ed. New Year view from Malibu coast Jan 2 2010] Mega trend #1: the rise of terroir in the USA. All of a sudden pockets of winemakers have discovered the meaning of wine that reflects a region instead of a style. First on this list are the small lot Willamette Valley producers of Pinot Noir and other vinifera. If you want to see and taste the best of these wineries and the general movement to smaller and better you should consider attending the 2010 Portland Indie Wine Fest (sometime in May). Mega trend #2: the diminution of wine Parkerization goes hand in hand with the upswing in terroir consciousness. Mega trend #3: general growth in all things local from wineries in Malibu and regions south of Salem OR to neighborhood retailers that feature value driven quality wines domestic and international. Let us hope this continues. Mega trend #4: the collapse of the trophy wine market. While it may seem we are delighting in the misfortune of others, such would be the case, selectively. Hooray for winecommune.com and winestilsoldout.com. If we can root against the Dodgers and Bruins in support of the Angels and Trojans then we can also root against Big Ticket Monster Cabs, ridiculously expensive Aussie Syrahs, and root for the success of Tablas Creek (showing how a "large" producer makes the terroir commitment), McKenzie-Mueller (Carneros true), Uvaggio di Giacomo (proving terroir sourcing works) and Malibu Sanity (vision and just enough madness). We smile every time we get an email from a local retailer announcing they are offering another Cult Classic at 60% off. And if you love Cabernet (because these are almost exclusively Napa Cabs) then your day has arrived...fortunately along with the presence of more low alcohol, well balanced wines from France, Italy and Spain. Now, if we could see something like this from Burgundy and Barolo? 2009 closed with a flurry of Barolo wines from the early to mid 1990s that needed to be opened. These were purchased between 2001 and 2003 following a trip to Piemonte. Barolo is a great wine that is tough to peg and time. The devotion to terroir has always been paramount. The flavors are unique among wine. Fungi and truffle flavors are not unusual; veggies are. Fruit ranges from cherries to plums. Many people find Baroli and Burgundy wines share similarities in style if not flavors. The only intra-regional conflict of note is the break between new and old styles which can be fairly summarized in whether to use oak barriques or the traditional cement vats or Slovenian oak barrels (the latter are rarely changed). In some houses both approaches can be found wherein Dad is traditional and the "kids" are modern (e.g., Ciabot Berton). Marc de Grazia Selections has one of the largest catalogs of Piemonte wines as well as wines from other regions in Italy. Perusing his catalog is worth a look just to see how many Barolo producers there are and how many of the less renowned ones we seldom see. Barolo were pricey when we bought them, even more so now. You will never see a decent Barolo U20. Some of the wines tasted below are still available for a price not much more than a notable Burgundy. Labels do not always match the vintage but in most cases they match the vineyard and the color scheme. 2008 Domaine de la Pépière "Vieilles Vignes" Clos des Briords Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie $15: Louis Dressner import, crisp, green apples. Could have had a bottle of this every time we walked into another holiday party and not gotten tired of it. Brightens the palate. A refreshing U20 wine at 12% 1996 Mauro Veglio Castelletto $55: Dark red brown color. Meaty alcohol nose. Spicy in the mouth. Tannic. Opens to a juicy, dense dime bag of dark blueberries and mushrooms. The wine is tight needing 90 minutes to open up. Then it is lean and masculine and still needs time. Like most of these wines, it is a Marc de Grazia Selection. Mauro Veglio, along with Clericao, is one of the new breed winemakers from Monforte d'Alba. This was the first vintage where he held the reins. 14% 1995 Elio Altare Barolo $125: This has all the advance rep; great producer in a very good vintage that was first in a string of seven vintages. Should be a runaway winner. But that is rarely the case with Barolo; more so than any other great red wine. The wines are finicky and this shows all that reticence to blow you away.The nose is lovely if somewhat muted. There is fruit but the wine is tight, so all is elusive. We decide to aerate with the "device"; how handy. The wine opens immediately but is still reserved. This is like preparing an abalone for the meal! Even the cork is a bear to pop at 2.5 inches long. Now the wine is intensely focused. The tar and roses show, especially the tar. Slowly she disrobes and shows all the charm we had hoped for. By the end of the evening the wine is gone and the memories are only of pleasures hard to describe. 13.5% 1996 Elio Altare Barolo $80: More red than brown color. Doughy nose. Plump and less rustic than the Veglio. Opens up with 30 minutes. More Burgundian in style, more fruity but still intense and focused. Very elegant and deep flavors. Loved this wine. 14% 1995 Revello Fratelli Barolo Vigna Giachini $70: Dark red color. Balanced, delicate Nebbiolo flavors. Not rustic. Ripe and fruity for a Barolo. La Morra vineyard and winemakers which usually indicates a softer wine. 13.5% 1993 Clerico Barolo Ciabot Mentin Ginestra $106: The vintage had the misfortune of being a good one followed by a mixed one (1995) that was followed by two great ones (1996 and 1997). So when we tasted a lush and generous wine that showed beautifully from the cork pull to the end we were very pleased. No holding back with this wine. It was friendly and enchanting from start to finish. Barolo wines can be so wonderful if you catch them at the right time. The fruit is unique giving a might to middle weight wine with delicate flavors that have a wide range of exotic sweet and savory styles. Instead of barnyard or gaminess they show fungi and mushrooms. They are always more elegant even when the winemaker's hand is less formal. Clerico is a recognized master winemaker so his wines should be wonderful in any vintage. 14% 1996 Pira Barolo Marenca $40: The perfect contrast for the 1993 Clerico above. This wine is rustic, ornery, petulant! It is horrid when opened. No fruit, no grace. Tighter than Urban Meyer's physician. More Woody than the legendary Ohio State coach. Everyone finds it absolutely disagreeable. But nobody can quite give it the em>bacio di morte and say it is a flawed wine. Bring out the "device" and aerate it! But wait 45 minutes. And he began to show some style and fungi flavors. The wine continues to open the entire evening growing more lovely with every half hour. It was more simple and direct, not quite as elegant but in the end showing that 1996 was a great vintage even for the most reluctant houses. 14.5% Happy New Year!

Christmas with the Chipmunks 2009

Sat, 26 Dec 2009 11:59:55 -0800

Me I want a hoola hoop! The holidays are coming and going in a blur this year (thankfully). 2009 has been tortuous for most of us given the ubiquitous economic "recovery". Tanks Gott the recession is over according to Bernanke and Supreme Blowhard Larry Kudlow!! This does not mean we cannot enjoy being with friends and family while we resist the urge to purchase items that demonstrate our supreme affection for members of both groups [ed. how tender]. However, rest assured the occasion for gathering is always going to be enhanced if the host pours some decent wines. We certainly found this to be the case in the Christmas week and will probably find the same truth to hold for the New Year. The usual gatherings at Casa tBoW featured most of the blog blowhards and they were clamoring for wine wine and more wine. Please excuse the fuzz tones on photos. Here is what got pulled. We hope your holiday party was equally filled with family, good friends, the Singing Chipmunks, and, if not good value, at least good wines. 2005 Nuits St George Aux Saint Julien Earl Daniel Bocquenet $50: If you want to buy a mixed case of wines from one source then you cannot do much better than North Berkeley Imports and Wines Shop in Berkeley CA. Like Kermit Lynch down the street they work with particular French producers so the consumer gets to try wines that can be referred to as under the radar. Here is one. Dark and brooding color for Pinot Noir. Separates Nuits St George from the Beaune. Delicious fruit. A little tight at first. Plums and cocoa. Pencil lead up front from the tannins. Tried again two hours later and the next day when the wine had finally opened fully. Think rustic style with elegant fruit. Nothing tastes like this! Dotoré says a "hand crafted wine." Absolutely. 13% 2004 Saxum Broken Stones $50: Dotoré rightfully cannot understand why I buy this wine. Like the coccyx is a vestige from our simian origins so buying ridiculously overpriced wines at absurdly high alcohol levels the remainder of a former "wine collector". I guess I can't help myself. 75% juicy, dense Syrah, 22% thick Grenache, and a smidgen of Mourvedre. We turned to the aerator which made a huge difference in readiness. Without aeration this brooding monster was like a young Shaq in the lane. Imposing, unrelenting and rejecting! Once mellowed by instant aging the wine showed its complexity. The nose is spicy, mineral, with green olives as well. In the mouth there are black olives, cocoa and rum toffee flavors. No heat form high alcohol. This is Paso wine at its best. The new world definition of complex. Despite the big fruit and high alcohol the wine shows restraint and control, excellent balance of flavors that offset the alcohol, a sure hand at work. 15.6% 2007 Pierre Chermette Beaujolais $15: From Peter Wegandt of Weygandt-Metzler Imports. Peter has a great lineup and this is a star within his Milky Way. This is precisely the kind of wine tBoW favors. As we have said so many times in the past what is not to like? Weighty fresh fruit flavors, balanced perfectly, satisfying from the first sip to the last. U20 perfection. Read about the producer at the W-M website. 12% 2005 Tablas Creek Tannat $42: Traditional grape form Languedoc region. TC has an acre planted. Very dark color. A bit hot on the first taste which is the alcohol showing. Acid balanced by sweet fruit. Some mintiness. Smoky, gamey, leathery. Can go quite a few years. Very nice wine made for big holiday meals. 14.8% 2006 Domaine Saint Andre de Figuiere Vielles Vignes $16: Getting figgy wid it. 75% Vermentino and 25% Semillon. From the producer that made last summer's best Rosé. The kind of non-traditional blend they can make in Languedoc. A wonderful wine. Fig flavors and nose. Soft acids. Exquisitely drinkable. 13% 2007 Vom Rotem Schotter OTT Riesling $36: Austrian Riesling picked up at El Vino Wines in Venice. Artisan wine. Plenty of bright lively acid really sets this one off. Balanced, fresh, lotsa lime and flinty flavors. The young folks who usually drink tequila love it; they did not ask for salt. 12.5% 2001 Salomon Undhof Kremser Koegl Riesling Reserve $30: The contrasting Riesling. Also Austrian, softer acids, older vintage. A single vineyard wine with strong reputation from a region with 600 years winemaking tradition! Oily texture with stuffing. Muted nose. Prefer the younger style! This could use more fruit. It is most likely we should have opened this on its own instead of the party setting. 13% The photo above and below are the same 30 foot "tree" constructed of shopping carts. I am told this is an annual installation. You can check it out in Venice on Main Street behind Peetes Coffee. Afterward, you can taste wines at El Vino on Abbot Kinney!

Malibu Wine Country Report

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 09:34:27 -0800

I don't care how rich you are...you can't grow decent wine in LA. Besides, there are too many other reasons to not even try. The idea already failed 100 years ago when Southern California was the state's wine center. Most of the planting was northeast of the city in the high desert. Prohibition shut down the locals and the state's wine capital moved to north to the Central Valley, Sonoma, and Napa. SoCal never recovered...until now. There are 150 new acres planted to vinifera in the Santa Monica Mountains representing 50 vineyards. Do the math...these are small plots. Who are these mad vintners? Growing vines and making wine is not like putting in a pool with a slide. Acreage under 5 acres makes it very hard to turn a profit since 1 acre will yield only 75 cases of wine. Undeveloped land in Santa Monica Mountains makes developers drool. Planting vineyards where they see condos or gated McMansion "communities" must drive them nuts. Be serious. You have to have money to burn to do this. And they do. They include actors and folks who sold a very successful business like the Cheesecake Factory or Lowes Hardware; or ran hedge funds or got rich selling helicopters. God knows. Some people say you get a tax break if you plant vines because that will throw your property into a lower tax bracket. But that is not why they are doing it. I think many of this new corps are wine snobs, grape geeks, the kind who say things like "great wine is not a matter of price but of availability". So what about the wines? Visit Cornell Corner off Troutdale Road which is off Kanan Dume Road which is in the Conejo Valley which is one valley north and outside of Los Angeles...and find out. Now tBoW thinks Cornell is exactly the kind of cheesy name a developer would come up with. But it ain't. Cornell has been a three building outpost on the old stagecoach route more than 100 years. If you drive there over Mulholland Highway from Calabasas the way everyone once came it IS a long way. But if you take the 101 and exit at Kanan it's only 5 minutes on the way to the beach. The new plantings are barely 10 years old. There is a big dog in the region, the Semmler property with just under 100 acres planted. They have their own tasting room and a cave with 300 year old Chumash cave paintings of the Spanish Portola expedition on horseback. They recently handed over the winemaking to a real winemaker so soon there will be more to do than see the cave. tBoW visited the Cornell Winery and ate at the Old Place next door in a downpour which only added to the wonderful atmosphere of both settings. Cornell Winery is not a winery but a tasting room for local labels and gallery for local artists. The building, built in 1870, was refurbished by Denise and Tim, who own the "winery" and the restaurant next door. The restaurant is a local haunt having existed out in the boonies for more than 50 years before the new 101 was built in the 70s, when tBoW and the Mrs used to hitchhike the old inland road with two dogs. True story. Cornell features Malibu and Santa Monica producers and vineyards. A few of the labels source juice from other regions, e.g., Santa Barbara and Lodi. However, the majority are home grown. Now, I Gotta Tell Ya, [ed. glowering above] there have been a few articles about the new winery projects. They are always portrayed as vanity deals which is easy to believe because the conditions for growing wine on this stretch of the California coast are not exactly ideal. The most notable "success" story is Rosenthal's Bordeaux blend which is a blueprint for what not to do; grow Bordeaux varietals, and price it like another "collectible" Napa fruit bomb. If Paso Robles is wrong for Cabernet Sauvignon then Malibu must be even worse. The Semler project has produced thousands of cases of very mediocre wine for 10 years. At least they have planted Rhone style grapes. One thing is absolutely certain...you cannot grow Pinot Noir where people surf! So what can we reasonably expect of more newbies working 1 to 5 acres? Smaller tragedies? Here is what we tasted. We were surprised. 2008 Rosenthal Surfrider Sauvignon Blanc $19: Edna Valley juice in a "New Zealand" style which means grassy. It is green and grassy. 10% of sales benefit the Surfrider Foundation which is very very nice. 14.4% 2008 Republic of Malibu Beach Blonde $22: The label name winner for Republic. The wine is 91% Chardonnay and the rest Viognier which is not really discernible. However, the wine is nice with a smoky nose, light gold color, buttery feel. Estate grown on two acres in Malibu. Tiny production. A very restrained and much admired 13.5%. Bravo! 2008 Republic of Malibu Rosé Pink Lady $19: Grown in Corral Canyon which has to be the same 2 acre vineyard, right? Chalky nose and flavor. IGTY likes it because it is not sweet. And that is correct. However, Mrs. tBoW likens the flavor to Kaopectate which is probably not where the winemaker was aiming. Not a bad wine but you can buy a lot of great Rosés for under $20. 13.9% 2007 Cantara Barbera $32: Juice from Lodi which is a long way from Malibu. The owners live in Camarillo which is close enough I suppose. Apparently, they do not have any Malibu plantings. They must be very friendly. For such a young wine it shows very little tannins. Instead the wine is soft and sweet. Tastes Italian. Denise says it is a great everyday wine for any meal. Yes but not at this price. Another much appreciated low alcohol wine at 13.5%. 2007 Milan Vineyards Maximilian $45: It was only a matter of time before we met a bottle named after a much-loved family member. It's like the group of people who buy paintings of landscapes and flowers. These vineyards are in Topanga Canyon [ed. tBoW loves Topanga]. This is a more sophisticated wine. It is an outlaw blend of 50% Merlot, 25% Cab Sauvignon and 25% Syrah. And it is grown in my backyard! Great mouth feel, silky smooth and well balanced. Medium weight, soft fruit but high alcohol at 15%. An impressive effort. 2006 Hoyt Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon $19: Off the map and off the web! But a wine with some age. And it tastes like Cabernet Sauvignon; meaty, chocolate, some veggie quality. Slight sweetness. Mrs. tBoW likes it. Our second U20. 14% 2005 Malibu Valley Vineyards Reserve Syrah $15: It's a vintner like this that gets tBoW excited. All his wines are $15 so people will try them! Brilliant! These new winemakers stuff their dog's beds with hundies so push the bottles out the door ferkrissake. And this is nice wine with a little age. Nice dark robe. Some BBQ sauce on the nose which I like. Some tannins which with the decent fruit shows it is trying to be serious. Taste the vanilla oak. Wonder how long? The hands down U20 winner! 13.6% makes it another big drinkability winner. NV Saddlerock Old Vine Tawny Port $20: Saddlerock is the second label of Malibu Family Wines. This is a nice non-vintage wine. The oldest plantings on the Semler ranch are Cab and Merlot from 1987. Wonder what is in here. Nice nutty flavor with a caramel core. Nice wine. 19% The Old Place is quite a place and definitely worth a visit. If you are coming to LA skip Universal Studios or Rodeo Drive and go here instead. Read about the former owner Tom Runyon and learn something about the way it once was in the Malibu Hills at the link above. We bought two bottles at Cornell and toted them into The Old Place. 2007 Malibu Vineyards Vortex Sangiovese $39: The price is too high and tBoW got fooled by the vortex of Malibu winery names thinking this would be the $15 bottle by Malibu VALLEY Vineyard. The wine tastes like Sangiovese. It had that nice acidic backbone with a lean kind of sweetness. Mrs. tBoW does not like this style. It is Old World which is somewhat surprising for a New World wine. Light body weight. Had it after the killer wine of the evening which was tough competition. Great alcohol level...12.9% 2008 Malibu Sanity Pinot Noir Schetter Vineyard $42: Hey! I thought I told you to not even try to grow Pinot Noir down here ya knucklehead. IGTY said we had to buy this bottle. He was paying so tBoW said go ahead. There was every reason to expect something unusual...even bizarre. If you can't grow Pinot Noir in Paso Robles how can you grow it 200 miles further south? Well, put me in the barrel and stomp my fruit. This was very good wine. Pretty, light cherry red color. Delicate weight and delicately balanced flavors. Cherry style with bacon bits. So easy to drink. You have never had a Santa Rita Hills Pinot as light on its feet. Paul Lato makes sinewy if genteel wines that are still masculine. This is 100% girlie and completely charming. Think Juliette Lewis in Cape Fear. After dinner tBoW spotted a bottle of 1998 Domaine Dujac Clos de la Roche on the bar (empty) at the Old Place. I started up a conversation with Tim (proprietor in both entities) and mentioned the Sanity Pinot. "Oh yeah, that guy is a total Burgundy freak." Well no shit. 14.5%

Speaking of wines

Sat, 12 Dec 2009 13:02:09 -0800

Holidays are here. tBoW is getting ready for a big Xmas day party. Touring local wineries today. Here is my holiday bling collection courtesy of a Downtown LA vendor. Have to make a shopping stop there next week. Here are the wines bringing holiday cheer. 2005 Fitou Bel Armant Chateau Champ des Souers $15: This may be the third time tBoW has reviewed this wonderful little Languedoc/Corbieres wine from Beck Wasserman. Toffee nose, soft, vanilla, fruity. Balanced well. Blends Grenache, Carignan and Mourvèdre. Just very pleasant and completely enjoyable. 13.5% 2006 Domaine des Croix Beaune 1er Cru Les Bressandes $39: An perfect example of when it is time to break the U20 barrier. A Becky Wasserman Selection by the winemaker for Camille Giroud, David Croix. Les Bressandes is one of the great under-the-radar Burgundy premier cru vineyards. This wine is made by an under-the-radar young and upcoming winemaker who handles it beautifully. This is his eponymous label. The dopey phrase iron fist in a velvet glove comes to mind although it probably has no application to Burgundy. Having said that [ed. apologies to Larry David but honestly we have been busting over-used and convoluted "phrasing" for decades; consider "unchartered", "there you go", "if you will" and worst of the worst, like nails dragging across a chalkboard - what's that? - "IT IS WHAT IT IS"! As Dotorè insists, no it isn't.] the wine is focused with a cherry-ish fruit core. Very few feral flavors or aromas, light on tannins, showing polish and skill tBoW picked it off a WHWineCo mailer - and since we bought it blind - this proves the wisdom of having a local wine store you can count on. 13% 2003 Domaine Maxime Chomel Crozes Hermitage Sassenes $23: Hermitage is one of the great vineyards in the Rhone. Crozes is the step-bother, much larger with many wines from the collection of secondary vineyards. This wine has lots to recommend; hand picked, 330 cases, 100% Syrah from old vines. This wine is a bit dirty right away. Is it Bret? Probably not but it is tannic and rustic just the same. Black red color. Syrah bended with Marsanne/Rousanne which gives some sweetness. Raspberries. Quaint. 13.5% 2006 Michel Sarrazin Givry Champs Lalot $20: Strong vanilla on the front palate. Gaminess, creamy flavors. Light to medium weight. Gentlewine for gentle men and women. Givry is one of the lesser appellations in Burgundy, in the the Cote Challonais; a value region for a broker who knows what they want. A North Berkeley Wine pick. They pick the barrels and blend the juice under the producers' label but it is an NBW wine. Very nice. 13% 2008 Evesham Wood Willamette Valley Pinot Noir $18: This Oregon winery is in the southern end of the Willamette Valley near Salem. We have had some wonderful and some ordinary wines from EW. This is in the latter group. We would have liked to have been impressed but were not. Flavors are nice enough. It is just that we can think of enough other wines we could have for the price point or less (see Fitou and Sarrazin). In fact, price point is an issue generally with Oregon Pinot Noir. Our experience is the best values are between $30 and $40. Of course, you could write the same for Burgundy. 13% Happy Hannukah!

Airport Wine Bars?

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 15:08:50 -0800

Airport wine bar - it just sounds so desperate. Hardly. The help was knowledgeable and the wines were carefully, intelligently selected, and I could construct my own flight cherry picking from the ten flights offered. And the price was right. If I did not want a flight I could pick my wines and pour size from the well represented list. In short, they pretty much covered all the bases. Next time you are in the Sacramento airport check out Vino Volo, a wine bar....in the airport. This brilliant idea belongs to Doug Tomlinson, a financial guy who enjoys wine and apparently spent a lot of time in airports wishing he could be tasting wine instead of poring over paperbacks or looking at boring golf shirts in the PGA store. He was also thinking up clever corporate names like Taste Inc. which is the parent company of VV. Voila Vino Volo which translates (cleverly) from Italian to English as wine flight. Currently, in addition to Sacramento, there are airport Vino Volos grounded in Seattle, Oakland, Detroit, San Antonio, Newark, JFK NYC, Philly, and DC. Now, tBoW would not be touting this project unless the basic tBoW rules were being observed, to reiterate...interesting selection, good wines, fair prices. The prices on the list are high end retail, about 50% to 100% higher what you might pay for a bottle if you looked for it. I suppose that is the cost of doing business in the expensive retail space of an airport. However, the pours are fairly priced. Most importantly, we are not simply looking at Napa cabs...and remember I am in the Napa airport. Here is what we tried. 2008 Arger-Martucci VIneyards Viognier Santa Barbara "Iliad" $33: A central coast blend of mostly Viognier (at least 75% required to put the grape on the label) along with quite a few other varietals, e.g., Gewurztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscat. Color is gold. Sweet, salty, melon flavors. Some tannic bite, middle weight which is heavy for a white wine. Not tBoW's style - too tropical - but still has appeal because it has bold flavors. Should be pretty good with oily foods. A good start for the Thanksgiving meal suggests the hostess. And she would be correct. 14.2% 2006 Cargassachi Pinot Noir $48 (wine list price): A nice contrast to recent earlier vintages from one of Santa Rita Hills two or three most coveted vineyards, made by the grower himself. As long standing as Peter is a grower (and it isn't that long) he is that much less as a winemaker. But he is getting better. This vintage shows a better made and more interesting wine than the 2004 or 2005, both reviewed elsewhere and earlier on this blog. There are smoky bacon whiffs on the nose. Color is light cherry red. Weight is gentle. Still a young wine. Very tasty with good pinot flavors and a lighter than usual for SRH alcohol level. Kind of pricey! 14.3% 2007 Il Matane Primitivo $29 (wine list): I am becoming more aware of Italian red wines on the nose! Like the flavors one often encounters a profound acidic backbone. Sometimes it is sharp; usually it is bracing, firm. This wine is dank and even sweaty on the nose. Some would say this is a sign of bret. Not in this case. No sweaty socks. Sweeter. Ripe raisin flavors. Dark flavors, chocolate (but not dark chocolate), spicy like chili! Vineyards are on the Adriatic coast, the Manduria appellation. It is a "finished" wine. Compact. A bomb but not a ripe one. The most interesting of the flight. 14% Why didn't you think of this?

Turkey Day Extravaganza!

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 15:40:58 -0800

Thanksgiving is an extravaganza to be indulged at every age. The day is all about indulgence in your favorite activities. AMC has all the Godfather movies. There are college hoops, college football and the pros. A buncha abundanza. Many folks will make some effort to re-enact or recognize the "first" Thanksgiving. There will be plenty of political talk at the table. Some adult may look at everyone and suggest everyone say what are they thankful for today. Should that happen here is how tBoW will reply [ed. it did, he did]. I am thankful for being alive during an era of wine production that is wonderfully wide ranging in terms of regions and styles. I am thankful the Parker era is finally past. I am thankful that I am living at a time when local wine bars are sprouting like truffles in the fall. I am thankful Dotoré takes my calls and that I have plenty of great friends (IGTY, Mouse, M&J, Large) and family (Mrs. tBow, tBow kindt, the TOs) [ed. Turkey Queen stage left, her creation above] who have good palates and appreciate wine because it is so interesting. What about the Bird? A partner-in-wine is essential if the guest list will be lengthy [ed. Large partner below]. The T-day meal has become a vinous gauntlet. The only thing missing is Sly Stallone to shoot/punch/explode the corks off the bottles. Yo Pinot! Cut me Mick. G'head. Do it. Maybe you dined at your sister-in-law's like we did. Did she produce a fat brown bird or two bathed in truffle suffused butter? Stuffed with oysters and cherries? The only part of the Thanksgiving meal I will concede has gotten out of hand is the license for anyone to make an awful side dish...and serve it. This year it was a candied yam casserole topped with mini marshmallows. Like Billy Wilder's closing line from "Some Like It Hot", when Jack Lemmon pulls off his wig so Joe E. Brown can see he has just proposed to a man in drag Joe E. replies...nobody's perfect. Here is what got opened. NV Charles De Fere Blanc de Blanc $10: That is correct sir. A U20 champagne. Yeast streams out when the cork is pulled. Acidic, citric but not lemon or lime. Have to go to the flavor wheel. Has a bite. At this price, quality, alcohol level and cachet it is a wedding planners dream. From Du Vin, an outstanding wine shop in West Hollywood. 12% 2006 Domaine Alary La Grange $14: French Rousanne and another U20 winner. Good tannins with soft fruit makes it an easy Old World pick. Imported by Weygandt-Metzler makes it another easy pick for price and quality. 14.5% 2005 Sea Smoke Southing $50: The big ticket big rep wine of the day. Went so quickly tBoW could to get a second pour! Muscular strong nose. Alcohol is in your face. Extracted fruit. For my palate it is hard to distinguish Santa Rita Hills Syrahs from the Pinots. So excuse me for saying these wines are completely over-rated. There are quite a few other Santa Rita Hills fruit bombs out there less than half the price. Dotoré has a 2001 and a 2002 that will be sampled shortly. Large and tBoW Jr loved it. So call me a curmudgeon. Maybe if I could have gotten that second pour...? 14.7% 2005 Andrew Murray Syrah Roasted Slope Vineyard $30: Speaking of SRH Syrahs here is one of those often touted. Sweet juice. Nicely balanced. So unlike Old World Syrah, i.e., no roasted meats or coffee flavors. Like the other SRH/Central Coast wines best with food. 15% 2004 Linne Calodo Sticks and Stones $145 in Atlanta restaurant: If you like a big alcohol jammy fruit bomb this is your wine. Matt Trevanian likes non-traditional blends however this is his Rhone style from Paso Robles; 57% Grenache 23% Syrah 20% Mourvedre. In the moth it is still somewhat restrained for a really ripe wine. 15.8% 2006 Palama Mavro Salento $29: Picked this up at 55 Degree Wine shop in Atwater Village in LA. Charcoal nose less pleasant to The Large who likened it closer to paint thinner. However, it was agreed this Southern Italian wine from Puglia was the best with the Bird. Middle weight blend showing rich dense dark berry flavors that contrasted well with the Central Coast wines also strutting their stuff. 80% Negoramaro 20% Malvasia. Special thanks to blog with same interests for the label image! 13.5% 1985 Conti Boca $40: Score a double win for Italian wines. The Mavro took down the Bird Trophy while this rare and unusual wine took the Wine 'O Day hardware. This wine was contributed by Chef Tash (picut4d above) who learned of it at a Barolo tasting. It is in the northernmost corner of the Piedmont. At 24 years the wine is on the downside although that should not be taken to mean it is "over the hill" or any such diminution. This is sipping wine. It is like a great Barolo made in the style of the Piemontese old masters, think Giacomo Conterno and Rinaldi. Funky muted nose right away that opens for the next hour. Deep red brick color. The wine blends Nebbiolo with a local varietal Vespolina and sometimes Bonnarda. Like classic Barolo it is slow to open but as it does we get the delicate if masculine flavors of the high hillsides. All tannins have melded. Soft, pure, delicate dark fruit. A treat. This is the kind of wine that I will guarantee locals in the know [ed. Nino of Da Felicin] are sure to collect. Please read about the region's vinous history, this particular house, and this particular vintage! 12.5% Black Friday observation...the watch collection from Burberry advertised in the Nordstrom catalog seems without inspiration. This is the best they can do? A Timexwith a "signature" plaid strap?