it is just grapejuice

A short straw, but not necessarily for the worse, landed Digger and myself off the clock and at the bar early. Somehow a pint wouldn’t do as one of our favorite wine lovers, Cathy, finished simultaneously and we decided we’d drink something interesting. Betts & Scholl 01 Hermitage blanc chosen from the well endowed list, opened, poured… and then a general yawn from the gallery. I was mildly pleased with it, the subtle nature and flavors, growing in complexity, slowly as it sat open. I do love the style of northern rhone white grapes… many subtle and light impressions, hints and traces with no dominant feature. A little honey, a little mineral, a little peach, a little cream, etc. If we were not conscious of price, this wine would be called pleasing. I love the style of these wines and even though this may not have been a palate-altering experience, I favor this style to most any other whites and almost wish there were a morsel of cheese or scallops to give this wine some due respect. Much better than tartrates in the cornea.

Vin doux Naturel, is produced by adding a neutral grape spirit to fermenting must to arrest the fermentation. This raises the alcohol level to 15-18% abv and ensures that much of the sugar content of the must is retained in the wine. VDNs are always sweet.

Palomino (which makes up for the bulk of it) Pedro Ximenez, and Moscatel.

Steiermark is in Austria, bordering Slovenia. It produces Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. There are three sub-regions of Steiermark: Sudosteiermark, Susteiermark, and Weststeiermark (which produces rose wines).

“…that Chambolle threw me for a loop tonight. The closer I try to get to burgundy, the further it seems. I’ve stopped buying the reds in general lately (in my own personal drinking) but professionally, there is no avoiding it. Burgundy could be that pivotal threshold between a healthy enthusiasm and utter madness in many an oenophile. The force is strong in this one.
I feel good about the test. It is only a trivial test, afterall, and it’s the going all the way to Denver for it which is most bothering… thank goodness for applejacks.”

Best of luck my young Aprentice (:
(more…)

French for cellarmaster. This term is used in Bordeaux to describe the person that is in charge of the vinification and aging of wines.

The night of a hundred and more two-tops. I wasn’t working, however, and as I am not a fervent observor of holidays, it hadn’t occured to me that it was the 14th. Visiting family was our occaision, and a riesling came out first, the ‘05 from Zind-Humbrecht. Beautiful. A modest classic. The fare across the table varied from vegan to veal, escargot to edamame and a decent riesling from Alsace is a sure bet for any sprawl of fine to casual dishes. Not to lose pace, we ordered a Pichon-Longueville 01 ‘comtesse lalande’ for the entree. I would have the cod, but there was a lust at the table for red that was to be met. Everything on the nose. Not the best of your life, but all you expected, plus a little more. Orchestra of impressions, no element out of synch with the whole. Over half the botttle had been drunk, eagerly, before our main arrived… a glass of ‘77 colheita port would seal the meal and anyone with any sense would admit that life can be pretty nice. Back at home, a toasty, chocolatey tempranillo from Zamora, outside of Toro would follow the lineup. Cenit. A forest of oak, but certainly not out of proportion. Black cherry, some raspberry and deep cacao. Big wood, but well composed. Smokey wild game. A pretty good night off for me, all in all.

A crown cap is used during bottle fermentation, when producing a sparkling wine using methode champenoise. The crown cap has a small plastic piece that is inserted inside of the bottle into which the yeast sediment settles during the riddling process.

Dolcetto di Dogliani DOCG (Piedmont), and Morellino di Scansano DOCG in Tuscany.