Grapelive Lastest

November 14th, 2008 by admin | Posted in Fermented Travel, Wine Articles, Wine Travel, Wine Reviews | No Comments �

If you like touring the wine country, this is a great time to go, when things are slow and the weather is great for tasting. With the economic crisis and terrible job situation even the high end wineries are feeling the impact and are opening up their cellars and it is a good time to take advantage of this to see and taste these wines that are hard to get. Plus you can get into most of the super restaurants that are very hard to get into during the summer months, especially in Napa Valley. I am thinking that Santa Barbara may just be the spot to visit myself, with great wineries close by and warmer weather, plus an exciting nightlife Santa Barbara is a fun place to visit. Downtown Santa Barbara has the Wine Cask Restaurantand Jaffurs Winery so you can even do it on a day trip or a quick weekend get away, and if you have an extra day you can check outMelville Winery about 45 minutes North of S.B.

Hey, I just got news that one of my favorite winemakers has just released a couple of new wines and I am planning to get on to them real soon. Richard Alfaro, Alfaro Family Vineyards is releasing his estate 2007 Chardonnay’s and I am really looking forward to getting my palate on them, especially the new Lindsay-Page Vineyard as the last vintage was sublime and 2007 looks to be another fine wine. Richard just created a buzz here and in the Santa Cruz area by planting a plot of the Austrian grape, Grunner Veltliner! This wonderful grape produces a white wine of quality and goes great with food, I am all ready to drink it up, but sadly these vines will need about 3 years to get started, but I’ll be waiting!

My random thoughts, Oh, I just re-tasted the 2006 Pisoni Estate Pinot Noir, and it is even better than I thought it would be and still think it might be the wine of the vintage. I was hanging out with Jacques Melac of Carmel’s Rancho Cellars and noticed a tiny amount of this Pisoni in stock still… Plus he turned me on to some great values on some new wines he is stocking, a couple of these were from Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant (Importer) you can see them on my reviews page So if you are looking for great small estate wines that offer great value you can check Jacques out at Rancho Cellars either online or if you get to Carmel you should stop by, he has just added a deli counter offering many gourmet sandwiches and tasty bites made by his Chef wife, Janet Melac. They are also doing take out, so now you know what I’m eating for dinner when I’m in town! Last but not least, I hear from my friends at The Wine Spies that sales are going great these days as they give huge discounts daily on some fun selections, good job guys, keep it up.

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Cheers,

Kerry

I just posted all my tasting reviews! From my trip to Oregon, please check out all the great Pinotswww.grapelive.comCheers,-Kerry

This was an exciting day, as I’ve been a big fan of the main three wineries we planned to visit and I was finally going to walk and taste the famed Beaux Frères Vineyard in person. To me Beaux Frères, is like a top Grand Cru Burgundy comparable to Domaine Romanee-Conti, or better yet Domaine Comte Georges du Vogue makers of the great Musigny & Bonnes Mares. But first we were headed to Penner-Ash and then Shea Vineyards; it doesn’t get better than this! After finding the right road leading to Ribbon Ridge and Yamhill County things were all right in the world, with beautiful sunshine and views of wild blackberries and hazelnut orchards. This is pretty country and very peaceful, with stunning vistas across the valley with the impressive Mount Hood in the background.Penner-Ash Wine CellarsLynn Penner-Ash makes some of the finest Pinot Noir period, and I have always been a fan since I first tried her wine some five or six years ago. Lynn went to Davis, did some time in Napa, then headed north taking the winemaking role at Rex-Hill Vineyards before creating her own label. In 2005 she got her own winery up and running, as well as sourcing her own estate vineyard, the Dussin Vineyard. Since then things have only got better she continues to showcase her talent and gather acclaim worldwide. In fact, recently she was hired by a “Cult” Napa Valley producer to make a special Willamette Valley Pinot Noir for them to partner their highly rated and priced Cabernet Sauvignon!Natalie gave us the tour and told us all about the place, Natalie runs the front of the house and is a wonderful guide with great stories and a good sense of humor. The best story she told was of how the winter rains flood the lower driveway to the winery, which hits about a mile up on a hill, with the raging waters too deep to drive through for up to two weeks at a time. No problem for Natalie, she puts her laptop and cell phone in her backpack and canoes across the river of water and then hikes the mile trek to the winery and office each day! I think she needs a raise Lynn, don’t you? That is the real pioneer spirit, and shows some of the down to earth nature of the Willamette Valley that comes through when you get to know people here.Did I forget to tell about the wine? Well, I’ll fix that now, as this was one of the best line up’s of wine by a single winery that I’ve tasted ever! We started with a lovely Rogue Valley 2007 Viognier, which was a classic in flavors and purity with honeysuckle, spice, apricot and peach. Then we were treated to five fantastic Pinot Noirs, four of which were single vineyard wines that showed each terroir well, and the fifth was the flagship wine of the Penner-Ash Wine Cellars, the 2006 Willamette Valley. Included in the single vineyard selections were: the 2006 Dussin (Estate), the 2006 Goldschmidt (Dundee Hills), the 2006 Carabella (a vineyard Lynn advised on) and the 2006 Seven Springs. The 2006 Willamette Valley is drinking great all ready and should age great too, with amazing layers and complexity it won out in the end as our top choice, even though I was torn between the Seven Springs and the Dussin as well. Really they all were top notch and rival top Pinots from anywhere. After the Pinots, Natalie poured us the dry rose of Pinot Noir, the 2007 Roseo, which was a delight and I made sure I got a bottle before heading out.Penner-Ash Wine Cellars – Natalie Sigafoos15771 NE Ribbon Ridge Rd, 
Newberg, OR 97132Shea Wine Cellars & Shea VineyardsDick Shea is the man behind the legend of Shea Vineyard, Oregon’s most famous vineyard. The Shea Vineyard has graced the label of some of the greatest wines of this region and has the top winemakers in the Willamette and even California begging for this fruit. Mike Etzel (Beaux Frères), Ken Wright (Ken Wright Cellars), and Lynn Penner-Ash (Penner-Ash Wine Cellars) are just a few of the Oregon winemakers using these grapes to make amazing Pinots, and then there is the Californian wineries: Loring, Pali and Auteur as well. The Auteur 2006 Shea was utterly amazing and as close to perfect as Pinot gets. I would also compare Shea Vineyard with the Pisoni and Garys’ Vineyards (Santa Lucia Highlands) here in California, or even maybe also similar to the Melville Vineyard (Santa Rita Hills).We found Shea Wine Cellars and met up with Drew Voit, Shea Wine Cellar’s Winemaker, who I am grateful to for taking so much time out of his day to show us around and answer a massive amount of questions. Drew is a great guy and was kind, with a bright smile and lots of passion for his work. He has also consulted with Domaine Serene and really got their Chardonnay program to the next level. Here at Shea, he has the pick of the place and gets the most interesting selections for their line up of Pinots. Shea has lots of different sites on the vineyard, in fact Shea Vineyards is in reality two separated vineyards, and they have most clones planted. They use different blocks to blend into their main wine, the Estate Pinot, and then they have single block wines as well, and sometimes they produce even single clone wines like, the Wadenswil (a Swiss clone) and the Pommard (French clone).As we walked through the vines at Shea, it was hard not to feel content and at peace, as it is a special place, I even mentioned my thoughts to Drew who agreed with a knowing grin.Drew is very excited about the Chardonnay at Shea, and after tasting it I can see why, this is great stuff and a heady wine with bold richness and sublime balance and texture. This was the 2006 Estate Chard, which even though a hot year by Oregon standards showed focus and bright flavors with apple, pear and white peaches along with hints of fig, lemon, clove and vanilla. This is a very complex and layered wine that has class and body that are more Batard-Montrachet like than some quality California Chardonnay. Then we dived into the Estate Pinot, the 2006 vintage, which was extremely ripe and bold at first, but opened up nicely into a balanced and deep wine with lots of plum and dark fruits all held in with pleasing toasty oak. I can’t wait to get back to Shea and taste from barrel and see how the Chardonnay ages, plus after 2009 Drew is planning to due his own label and that will be really fun to keep up on. Shea was planted first in 1989 and they started producing their own wine in small amounts in 1996, and now are par with the worlds best, congrats Dick, you have a awesome place and make super wines.Shea Wine Cellars – Drew Voit, Winemaker12321 NE Hwy 240, Newberg, OR 9713Beaux Frères WineryMichael Etzel came to Oregon, liked what he saw and bought and took on a hog farm. This was 1986, and he only had a slight connection to wine, though an expert one, he had the famous wine critic Robert Parker as a brother in law. I guess Parker liked what he saw and became a full partner in the pigpen, soon to become vineyard. Michael hand planted Beaux Frères Vineyard in 1988 to 1990, all 23 acres, and took part-time work in the cellars of Ponzi and others to learn about wine. From bacon to Grand Cru in 10 years! In 1994 Michael produced one of the greatest Pinot Noirs in the new world and has never looked back. I was lucky to have tried that vintage recently and was amazed by what I was tasting, and I became a believer again. I remember the joy of tasting Beaux Frères from the 1998 and 1999 vintages and thinking of someday going to this place, and today was going to be that day! The Beaux Frères Vineyard and the newer Upper Terrace Vineyard at Beaux Frères are both farmed biodynamic and much love and respect is given the land, and they feel this connects them spiritually to the place and makes much better wine.img_1616.jpgKurt Johnson, Beaux Frères Sales Manager and his boxer Jackson lead us on a march through the vineyard and told us the tales of this stunning site. Michael greeted us warmly, then went to sell metal scraps with his assistant winemaker Grant in tow, but Kurt and Jackson put on a great show and we were in no way disappointed and I really enjoyed my game of tug of war with Kurt’s dog while he talked about Beaux Frères’ past and future. Kurt also let us know that Ribbon Ridge and especially Beaux Frères produces darker and more intense fruit profiles, this might be from the sedimentary soils here, it seems all of the Yamhill-Carlton region is set on ancient seabed. I also learned that the original vineyard was and is planted to the Wadenswil (Swiss clone) and the Pommard (old French clone) giving me a new insight on these Pinot clones, both of which are not so popular in California, but make wonderful and complex wines here. He also let us know the newer vineyard the Upper Terrace that Michael planted modern French clones like 113, 114, 115, 667 and 777 as well as a tiny plot of Grenache, yes I said Grenache. Well, that is crazy I thought, but I got have one; I mean I really need this wine! So I bought one, and took it away with me. (I drank it later that night, I could not wait…)Beaux Frères does three Pinot Noirs normally, a Willamette Valley from purchased fruit and the Beaux Frères Vineyard Estate Pinot and the Upper Terrace Estate Pinot, plus that crazy Upper Terrace Grenache mentioned above. We able to try the 2006 Beaux Frères Estate Pinot Noir, which never regularly gets poured, but they had sold out of the Willamette Valley Pinot Noir, oh too bad! So, after all the build up how did it taste? Well now, even though I have had the 2006 earlier and rated it way up there close to perfect, this wine did not let me down. Let’s just say with only a tiny sip and sniff, I was in heaven, as this is a great and almost perfect wine. In fact I was so utterly convinced I gave my winemaker friend the rest of my glass! Amazing is all I can say now, the dark rich fruit and sublime smoky oak notes frame it perfectly and the depth is compelling all ready, even though it should be a wine for the ages. Maybe, just maybe, we had saved the best for last, at least I think so. It was a great moment to live, Beaux Frères is an important place and one of the Grand Cru sites in the new world, and it was fun to catch up with Kurt, oh yeah, I had met him before when he had been with Etude in Napa Valley and more recently when he was down showing off Beaux Frères in California this last March. People do make a difference and Kurt is one of the good guys in this business and it great to see that nice guys make good in this world.Beaux Frères - Kurt Johnson, Sales Manager15155 NE North Valley Road Newberg, Oregon 97132 USATelephone: (503) 537-1137 Facsimile: (503) 537-2613 e-Mail: info@beauxfreres.com*Grapelive Notes:The Yamhill-Carlton District and Ribbon Ridge area in the Willamette Valley form sort of a horseshoe shape of raised ancient seabed and produce wines of slightly darker color (in general) and more intense dark flavors, led by blackberry, plum and briar notes. Though most Oregon wines have good acidity, it seems that the Yamhill-Carlton have more tannins which would lead me to believe that they might have aging advantage. It is something I’ll keep exploring, for sure.www.grapelive.com-Kerry

Today, I was planning on writing about recent wine trips and the ups and downs, but I was confronted with the news this morning and became sad and worried, with all the terrible things going on. Train, bus and car crashes, idiotic lying Politians, and media that needs a moral compass and the worst of all things war. Trying to clear my head and escape the images of tanks and selling became totally impossible. The war, between rebels in South Ossetia, a want away republic sandwiched by Georgia and Russia, and the forces of the Republic of Georgia has intensified to the points where Russian army forces now are faced up against the Georgian army and the whole of the region could explode.The Caucasus have been quiet for a few years following Putin’s crushing of the Chechens, but remains a simmering hot spot with many ethnic tensions. Let us hope that things will cool off and may peace win, instead of violence.If you were wondering why I would mention this little known area and passionately want things there to stabilize, well, there are many reasons, but the region is also the most likely birth place for modern winegrowing, dating back 5,000 years! Wine relics, vineyard cultivation remains and trade records all point to an advanced wine trade here and may even be older than mentioned. This was part of the Silk Road, the trade route between Asia and Europe..While winemaking from wild grapes and fruits seems to date back to about 7,000 years ago, these finds in the Caucasus Mountains seem to be the true home of trained vineyards. These areas stretched from the sea in what is modern day Iran to these very Mountain Valleys that we have this war going on..I was in Russia last year and was told because of politics they were not importing Georgian wines, and I had to settle on some pretty scary stuff from the other break away republic in Georgia, Abkhazia. In Hugh Johnson’s “The Story of Wine”, he puts forward that the Caspian Sea and Black Sea are the birthplace of winegrowing, and goes with modern day Iran as the likely starting place along with areas of Georgia. While I was in Russia, I had heard tales that it was for sure parts of Georgia and other hidden mountain valleys in the Caucasus range that may have been first, but it was hard to get in there to prove it, and now it seems even more unlikely that we are going to be able to explore this beautiful and mysterious wine region.In an ironic twist, it is the Russians that have promoted Georgian wine and were their biggest market, as even though the west enjoys open trade with Georgia, we are not into their wines and have very little available to us. I tried to find hidden stashes in Moscow, in small markets and restaurants, but was denied. Too much fear and nationalism in Russia allowed me to get my hands on any. So I was forced to drink European and wines from the Ukraine mostly, while in Russia. Though I am very interested to explore Caucasus wine and maybe discover some of wines’ history. I will say I did get to try some lovely Georgian red wine in Riga, Latvia back in 2005, and it was that taste that set my mind to finding more..So let us hope for true and lasting peace in the Caucasus regions and bring all of these people to a place of security and stability. Maybe it will be wine that does it, but the UN needs to move in first. Keep your fingers crossed, send your good thoughts and don’t let this area be put on the back burner, especially now that people are being killed..www.grapelive.comBy Kerry Winslow

Grapelive Lastest: Smoke on the Water…. (Monterey Bay).With fire in the sky, I went out to Galante Vineyards and saw huge flames rising from the last of the “Basin Complex Fire” and sipped a wonderfully crisp Sauvignon Blanc. Jack Galante had his Wine Gang day out to his beautiful and remote ranch in Carmel Valley to enjoy his estate wines and a BBQ with Chef Michael Reese, the Cajun specialist. It was hot and smoky, but a fun filled day and enjoyable tour. Jack has almost unlimited energy and skill, chatting away with his guests, pouring wine, four-wheeling to remote vineyard sites and poaching old wines from his private cellar with out coming up for air! His loyal following and team all celebrated with rose petal foot baths, spiced tri-tip, savory beans, pretty vistas and lots of Galante’s famed Cabernet Sauvignon, even a 1995 Galante Vineyards “Blackjack Pasture” to quaff on. I stayed with their bright and refreshing 2007 Sauvignon Blanc, as it was close to 90 degrees out and I was hiking around the vineyards. Over the hill the firefighters were back lighting and set a ridge a blaze with 60 foot flames, which looked terrifying, but was done to create a buffer zone and keep the fire line secure. Later in the day Jack took me up to his high elevation Pinot Noir vineyard, “Almond Flat”, and I was amazed at both the height and the danger in which I was put to get there! In the end it was a very rewarding trek as I got to see this amazing site and view the whole valley from there. Planted to mostly Calera clone with some other modern French clones, including 777, “Almond Flat” is a special place and a site that will produce some special fruit in the years to come. The current release, the 2005 and the 2006 both are big steps for this small winery and remind me of Nuits-St. George Burgundies with intense earthy and mineral notes and brisk, tight and dark fruits. These wines need air and food to show their class as intended. The 2005 gained elegance and depth with over 24 hours of air and I think the 2006 might be a 5-year lay down. In other words, like real Burgundy!.On a drink up note, their 2006 Galante Cabernet Sauvignon “Red Rose Hill” is a smash hit, with beautiful red fruits, smooth tannins and lush textures. This is a blend change, now included are small lots of Petit Verdot, Petite Sirah and Malbec that give many good complexities and fill this pretty wine out. Then there is the estate Sauvignon Blanc, this being from the 2007 vintage, with lovely tangy citrus and melon flavors that are zesty and pure. Both are their Wine Gang favorites, so be sure to call them quick like to get any that remain unclaimed!Another wonderful weekend gone, but long-lived memories forever!.GALANTE VINEYARDSwww.galantevineyards.com.Last week I ran into Richard Alfaro and his wife Mary Kay, Alfaro Family Vineyards, and I re-tasted his 2006 Alfaro Family Vineyards Chardonnay “Lindsay-Page Vineyard” Santa Cruz Mountains Estate, and wow, I was again blown away! This is a world class Chardonnay that ranks right up there! I am not kidding you when I say it rates well against Batard-Montrachet and anything from this State for sure, in fact I had to bump it up a few points on score. I have been singing the praises of the South Santa Cruz Mountains for a few years now, mainly shouting about the Pinot Noir Like Richard’s estate, Windy Oaks and more lately Jennifer Pandol’s Pandol Pinot sourced from the Schultze Vineyard, but this Chardonnay is amazing and totally mind blowing. It is complex and lush from beginning to end with pear, apple, lemon tart and hazelnuts framed with sweet oak notes. Richard and Mary Kay Alfaro are also making some fine estate Syrah and even a Bordeaux-style estate Merlot that they are releasing soon..ALFARO FAMILY VINEYARDSwww.alfarowine.com.2006 Galante Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon “Red Rose Hill”, Carmel Valley EstateGalante’s Red Rose Hill Cabernet is a soft tannin and pretty wine that ages well and offers full flavors, and this wine takes that to the next level and then some! This wine is a new blend, a Cabernet base with small lots of Malbec, Merlot and Petite Sirah, with the Malbec being new to the Galante ranch. They make a big impact here giving added color and more texture, with some savory spice notes added in too. This wine now is Galante’s homage to Chateau Margaux or Bordeaux’s left bank and I would say it is successful in giving an impression of the French classics. The wine has plenty of fruit, but not soaring alcohol levels and maintains good grip and balancing acidity making this a super wine with food and one that can age with elegance. I still would recommend drinking now as it is really good as is, even if it will fill out more in the next year or so. The fruit is red currant, plum, black cherry, raspberry and cassis with some dried rose petals, cedar, sage and spicy sweet oak shadings. ($35-40 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive.GALANTE VINEYARDSwww.galantevineyards.com.2006 Alfaro Family Chardonnay Lindsay-Page Vineyard, Santa Cruz MountainsThis is a big full bore Chardonnay that is ultra rich and incredibly deep and focused with lovely flavors and a long lush finish. Hazelnuts and white flowers lead to pure pear and apple fruit, with touches of clove, mineral, honey and vanilla. This wine is still a month or so away from release, but it is well on its way to be a classic. A little more than a hundred cases of this wine is heading to market, so get on it now! ($30 Est.) * I revisited this wine recently (July 2008) and I must say it is even better now and reminds me of a great Batard-Montrachet! This wine is stunning and I can really not say this any other way, get it and get it now if you are a Chardonnay drinker, even if you are not you’ll love this wine. (94 Points before) 95 Points, grapelive.Alfaro Family Vineyardswww.alfarowine.com.For more reviews and newswww.grapelive.com