Wine Infographic: Wine Storage/Aging Cheat Sheet

New in the wine cheat sheet series:  storing and aging wine.  Here's your quick reference for how to store wine, which wines age well, and when to drink most wines.

To see the Cheat Sheet in full size…
…in Internet Explorer, right click on it and select “open in new tab.”
…in Chrome, right click on it and select “open link in new tab.”
…in Firefox, right click on it and select “view image.”

Counterfeit Wine is Fascinating

Buying fake wine is not a problem you or I are likely to have, but it is fascinating nonetheless. Unscrupulous people have created fake bottles of rare, old, or expensive wines by blending together other wines and putting them into bottles made to look like the real thing. These counterfeiters age the bottles and labels, and sometimes buy bottles of the real wines to drink and refill with their imitation blend. To do this successfully takes a lot of wine expertise and a lot of startup money. These people are usually looking to make a buck, but they seem to also get a kick out of the prestige of circulating with the top collectors, critics, and writers of the wine world and offering up impressive (fake) bottles for tastings and auctions.

So many aspects of this are fascinating to me:  the process of creating a believable fake, the way the counterfeiters ingratiate themselves with collectors and experts so that the bottles they produce will be accepted as authentic, and the forensic detective work that can unmask the frauds. Another attractive aspect may be that I don't expect to ever have to worry that a wine I'm buying is a fake, for the simple reason that I doubt I'll ever buy a wine so expensive that a wine counterfeiter would bother to fake it. Creating a fake wine is only worthwhile at the very top of the wine market, where wealthy collectors are spending thousands per bottle.

I can recommend a great book and a great movie about fake wine. The Billionaire's Vinegar is an excellent wine detective story that begins with a bottle supposedly once owned by Thomas Jefferson. A wine aficionado will recognize many of the names and places, but no wine knowledge is necessary to enjoy the story. (A movie of the book has been listed on imdb.com as "in development" for several years. Matthew McConaughey was set to star at one time.)

A great documentary about another massive wine fraud is Sour Grapes, which is currently available to stream on Netflix. Here's the trailer:

Either of these would be a great way to spend a few hours during your holiday time off, and the book would make a great gift.

How to Choose a Home Wine Fridge

Check out my latest article for HomeBrewTalk.com!

How to Choose a Home Wine Fridge

See all my articles for HomeBrewTalk.com here, and for WineMakingTalk.com here.

Comparing 2 $10 Cabernets from Texas

I'm on record as a fan of both Becker and Messina Hof. I've visited Messina Hof's main location in Bryan a couple of times, and I credit my first visit many years ago with sparking my deeper interest in wine. I'm also a regular drinker of Becker's wines and have converted several friends who have become fans. I often have wines from both producers on hand, partly because they're yummy, and partly for when I need to convince a skeptic that Texas makes good wine!

I decided it was time to do a side-by-side tasting of Texas Cabernets from these two producers.  Both wines cost around $10 per bottle.  Let's see how they compare...

2013 Messina Hof Barrel Cuvee Cabernet Sauvignon 

vs. 

2013 Becker Vineyards Iconoclast Cabernet Sauvignon

As you can see in the picture, both wines are "ruby" in color, but the Messina Hof Cabernet is a bit deeper in color with more of a purplish tinge, while the Becker is more reddish and less opaque.  This might indicate that the Messina Hof has fuller body and richer fruit flavor, but you never know until you taste.

The aromas from both wines are similar and fit with what you'd expect from a Cabernet wine. The Messina Hof smells of rich, fresh, ripe blackberries and cherries, with hints of tobacco and vanilla. The Becker Cabernet has more cherry aromas and less blackberry, with an earthy aroma more reminiscent of leather than tobacco.

On the palate, the Messina Hof Cabernet is fruity and easy to drink, with plenty of tannin (as you'd expect from a Cab), and quite a bit of acidity (which is a little unexpected). Acidity gives a wine a lighter impression and keeps this wine from seeming too heavy, rich, or cloying. There's also a smoky, savory flavor on the finish, with a hint of vanilla. The Messina Hof Cabernet is 13.5% abv, and the winery's web site says there is a small amount of Merlot mixed in.

The flavors of the Becker Cabernet differ from the Messina Hof in the ways that you'd expect based on the aromas. It's fruity, but slightly less so, and focuses more on cherry than blackberry. It has a slightly leaner body, slightly less tannin, and more earthiness, with more of a smoky impression on the finish. The Becker Cabernet is 13.7% abv.

It's interesting to note the difference in corks. While Becker uses real cork, Messina Hof uses imitation cork. Though there's an ongoing debate about which is better, for these wines the type of cork makes little difference. The type of cork matters most when the wine will be aged for many years, but these Cabernets are meant to be drunk young. We can tell this in 2 ways:  1) These wines are fruity and easy to drink. Wines meant to age for many years need time in the bottle to mellow, but these wines are already mellow. 2) Wines meant to age are usually found at higher price points, because they have to be at the peak of quality to age gracefully. These Cabernets are good quality, but destined for a different purpose and market.

I can't rank one of these Cabernets better than the other. They are similar, but the differences are a matter of personal preference. Whereas the Messina Hof Cab is slightly heavier, fruitier, and richer, the Becker Cab is a bit leaner and earthier. Both are approachable, easy to drink, and come at a bargain price. You can't go wrong!

[Correction: This article originally stated that both wines are made with Texas grapes. In fact, the Messina Hof wine is made with Texas grapes, but the Becker Iconoclast is probably not, as it does not state "Texas" on its front label. Becker does make a different, more expensive Cabernet from Texas grapes.]


You might also be interested in:
Texas Wine Cheat Sheet
Cabernet Sauvignon Cheat Sheet
A Dessert Wine from the Texas Piney Woods

Wine Gifts to Buy Online

I do most of my Christmas shopping online, because I don't have time to hunt through stores. If you have friends or family interested in wine, here are some suggestions to make your shopping easier. I have owned or used most of these items and have been impressed with them. Everything is listed according to category:  books, glassware/serving/entertaining, movies, etc. Enjoy!

BOOKS




For the novice wine enthusiast...  This is a cute, fun, and engaging book that also gets a lot of information across. It has good visuals, plus the scratch-n-sniff wine aromas. It would be great to keep on your coffee table as a conversation starter. I wrote a full review of it here.





For the beginning to intermediate wine enthusiast...  I just came across this book in past few weeks, and I love it. It covers lots of topics related to wine (how to taste, how to describe what you like, how wine is made, how to read labels, storing, serving, important wine regions, etc.) and answers all the "why" questions that I always want to know about. Even better, it's packed with infographics on nearly every page to illustrate the information. Look at the cute little yeasts! Later in the book, when the yeasts have died, they have Xs over their eyes.  It's awesome.

Also for the beginning to intermediate wine enthusiast...  Great Wine Made Simple is one of my favorite books for learning about wine on your own at home. It explains all the basics of wine in a clear and straightforward way, with a focus on learning to identify and describe the wine characteristics you like. To this end, it gives very specific instructions on how to set up your own wine tastings to learn about each characteristic. It lacks the fantastic infographics of Wine: A Tasting Course, but it recommends more tastings and goes into more detail about setting them up. For this reason, it's also a great resource for planning wine parties.





For the serious wine student...  This really covers all your bases.  There's not much you can't look up in this gigantic tome.





For the ultra-serious wine snob geek...  I haven't yet purchased a copy of this, but it's on my list.  If you know someone who always has to order the wine made from grapes you've never heard of, and you like her enough to spend over $100, this is what you need.





If you can't spend $100+ on your favorite wine geek, this poster is a great, less expensive choice.  A giant periodic table of wine grapes, organized according to detailed information about each of their characteristics?  Be still my infographic-loving heart!  Makes a great addition to any wine geek's office, kitchen, or preferred tasting area.



GLASSWARE / SERVING / ENTERTAINING

These are the glasses I use at home.  Because I plan wine tastings for groups, I need lots of glasses that conform to the standard tasting shape and don't cost much per stem.  These fit the bill, and I buy them by the case.  For more on choosing glassware, check out "Wine Glasses: What Kind, Why, and Where to Get Them."



  

I first saw this tequila tasting set for sale in the Museum of Fine Arts Houston gift shop.  I'm not sure what it had to do with the art on display, but I fell in love with it.  Except I don't drink much tequila... And then some great friends got it for me as a birthday present, and I've had fun experimenting with ways to use it.  My favorite way is to serve Port in the glasses and put chocolates or brownies on the tray.  Or you could serve Sauternes with foie gras or cheese as either an appetizer or dessert, and feel very European.  Not only does this serving set look great, but the glasses and tray come off the stand and can go through the dishwasher.  Hooray for easy clean-up!

**The price of the 6-shot set seems to fluctuate between $100 and $300.  If the price above looks high, check here.

I've never tried these before, but they look cool.  I've written before about why wine glasses should have a stem, but these are designed to travel, so I'm giving them a pass on that feature.  If you (or your intended gift recipient) like to take wine to any of the wonderful, outdoor Houston venues where glass is not allowed (like Miller Outdoor Theater or a Galveston beach), these would be a great way to upgrade your wine experience from that red plastic cup.





I own one of these and have been very pleased with it. The price has even come down quite a bit from when it was first released. Some people never decant or aerate their wines, others always do.  I fall into the "occasional" category. (For more on that topic, check out "Should you let the wine breathe?") But if you want to aerate, I think this is the best choice of the many options on the market. Some people like the Vinturi, but it takes 2 hands to use and spills if your aim is slightly off. This Nuance model fits into the neck of the wine bottle and provides a perfect non-drop spout.





If you have an open bottle you aren't going to finish, Private Preserve (or a similar system) is the best way to keep the wine fresh until you're ready to drink it. The can sprays inert, harmless gasses into the partially empty wine bottle, and the gasses, which are heavier than air, create a protective blanket on top of the wine, so it won't oxidize as quickly. Then you just stick the cork back in the top. For me, just one of these cans will last more than a year. For more on how to preserve wine, check out "Saving Your Leftovers (or, how Bear Dalton convinced me I'd been preserving my wine wrong for years!)."





Chalkboard table runners are fun to use at dinner parties or wine tastings. Write information about the wine, or which foods to pair with which wines, or let your guests write (or draw?) their impressions. As a bonus, the runner also protects the table from wine or food drips and spills. You need chalkboard markers to write on them. The markers go on wet (kind of like a paint pen, if you remember those), and need a few seconds to dry. Then the writing won't smudge. At the end of the night, wipe the chalkboard runner down with a damp paper towel (you may need to wipe a few times), and use it again and again. (You  can also see the aforementioned glasses in the pictures below.)

  

A fun and useful addition to any wine tasting party is the Wine Aroma Wheel.  It helps people identify what they're smelling in the wine.  It's fun at parties, but also for the serious wine student who wants to improve his ability to identify aromas.  An all-around great tool.







MOVIES



I enjoyed watching this film when it first came out, back when I was interested in wine but knew almost nothing about it.  I enjoyed it even more a few years later, after I had taken lots of wine classes.  It's entertaining, educational, and engages with one of the central issues of winemaking as the wine business becomes ever more globalized.





This film is also entertaining and interesting whether or not you know much about wine.  I wrote a full review of it here.



Happy shopping!

Wines for Thanksgiving

I've been drinking more Texas wine lately, so this year I'm serving Texas wine at Thanksgiving.  I like to offer guests a red and a white, so I've chosen McPherson Viognier and Becker Claret.

Here are some previous posts that can help you decide what to drink with your Thanksgiving meal this year:

-- Riesling, whether sweet or dry, is a classic choice.  If you go this route, you might want to consult the Riesling Cheat Sheet or "My continuing quest for cheap, dry Riesling."

-- Reds or rosés from the Southern Rhone Valley in France would also be a good choice.

-- If you're interested in serving sparkling wine, check out "The 2-Minute Guide to Bubbles."

-- See last year's recommendations for reds, whites, and sparkling wines at "Ideas for Thanksgiving."

-- I recently posted the Botrytis Cheat Sheet, a primer on the fungus that contributes to many amazing dessert wines. Any of these botrytis-affected wines would pair well with your pumpkin pie.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Top 6 Things to Know About Wine Vintages

The concept of vintages is fundamental to understanding wine, yet confuses many people.  Here are the most important things to know.

What is a vintage?

Vintage means year.  The vintage on a wine label refers to the year in which the grapes were grown.  For the vintage to be listed on the label, most wine regions require that at least 85% to 95% of the grapes be from that year, so a small portion from other years may be included.

Why do vintages matter?

In a word:  weather.  Weather conditions have a huge impact on the grapes in any given year.  A warmer year might yield grapes with higher sugar content, which would translate to a more alcoholic wine.  A cooler year might yield slightly underripe grapes with more vegetal characteristics.  Rain near harvest time is a notorious vintage spoiler, because it causes the grapes to absorb extra water which dilutes the juices.

Do vintages matter everywhere?

Some climates are more prone to vintage variation than others.  Maritime climates, such as Bordeaux and Oregon, tend to experience more weather fluctuations from year to year, so vintages matter more in those regions.  Also, a year that produced a great vintage in one wine region, might have produced a terrible one in another region.

Can I use this information to find wine bargains?

Yes!  If you know which vintages were outstanding in a certain region, you can expect all the wines from that region, even the less expensive ones, to be better that year.  Therefore, you can spend less money to get a great bottle of wine.  For example, if you normally spend $25 for a good Bordeaux, and you know that 2009 was a great year, you might spend less on a bottle from that vintage, knowing that the cheaper wine got a quality boost from the weather that year.  (Conversely, you also might decide to spend more on a bottle from that vintage, because you have confidence in its quality and want to buy a really amazing bottle.)

Do vintages affect aging?

Yes.  Even within a region that makes great wine, which is capable of aging for many years (like Bordeaux), a wine from a great vintage might have a significantly longer lifespan than a wine from a lesser vintage.  (More on wine lifespans here.)  In the vintage charts below, you'll see recommendations for when to drink a wine based on its vintage, such as "early maturing and accessible," "still tannic, youthful, or slow to mature," and "ready to drink."

Is there a handy reference for good and bad vintages?

Yes.  Various organizations produce vintage charts.

I recommend Robert Parker and The Wine Advocate's vintage chart (preview below).  This is a one-page quick-reference vintage guide which goes back to 1970 and includes "drink vs. hold" suggestions.  You can view it on a web page at this link, or download a pdf version here.  (I downloaded the pdf to my phone for easy reference.)

In the rare event that you need vintage data older than 1970, you can look to Decanter's vintage guide, which goes back to 1960 for some wine regions.  Decanter's guide offers good vintage information, similar to the Wine Advocate/Robert Parker chart, but is only updated through the 2008 vintage, whereas Robert Parker's goes up to 2013.

Happy hunting!

You might also be interested in:
Is your wine over the hill?
Burgundy, Bottle Aging, and Tertiary Aromas
Building a Better Wine Tasting

An eclectic list of good white wines under $15

I usually drink more red wines than white, but in the summer I like the cooler, lighter whites to combat the Houston heat.  Summer may be over (at least according to the school calender - the autumnal equinox won't arrive and officially bring fall with it until September 22), but we all know Houston will be sweltering for another month at least.  So I figured it wasn't too late to share a list of good white wines under $15.  This is a very eclectic list, based solely on what I happen to have tasted lately, so it's by no means exhaustive or even well-rounded.  But hopefully it will point you to something new to try!  

If I've written about the wine before, I linked to that post.  I also added a few words about the flavor profile.


DRY

• Buchegger Riesling, from Austria
• very fruity
• Pewsey Vale Dry Reisling, from Australia
• lemon, apricot, and minerality
• Chateau Ste. Michelle Dry Riesling, from Washington State
• green apple and lemon with some minerality
• (link to buy online)
• Sartori Pinot Grigio, from Italy
• citrus, mineral, and floral notes
• Fontana Candida Terre dei Grifi Frascati, from Italy
• citrus, pineapple, with a hint of toast
• Abadia de San Campio Terras Gauda Albarino, from Spain
• citrus and pear, little-to-no oak
• Vignerons du Pallet Muscadet, from the Loire Valley in France
• simple citrus flavors, with bready qualities from sur lie aging
• Gerard Bertrand Picpoul de Pinet, from Coteau de Languedoc in France
• simple and fruity, little-to-no oak
• McPherson Viognier, from Texas
• tropical fruits, floral notes, balanced by earthiness

DRY SPARKLING

• Anna de Codorniu, Brut Cava, from Spain
• fruity and toasty, a bit like Champagne
• (link to buy online)

DRY, HALF-SPARKLING (petillant/frizzante)

• Blanc Pescador, from Spain
• citrus and minerality

OFF DRY

• Sauvion Vouvray (Chenin Blanc), from the Loire Valley in France
• apple, lemon, peach, and earthiness

OFF DRY, HALF-SPARKLING (petillant/frizzante)
All of these are Vinho Verdes, and though they vary a bit in sweetness and flavor profile, they share the same crisp, refreshing, citrusy qualities.

• Casal Garcia Vinho Verde, from Portugal
• Esteio Vinho Verde, from Portugal
• Anjos Vinho Verde, from Portugal
• Opala Vinho Verde, from Portugal

MEDIUM SWEET

• Chateau Moncontour Vouvray (Chenin Blanc), from the Loire Valley in France
• fruity with earthiness to balance

Rosa Regale: Fresh, Crisp, Juicy, and Sweet

If you like sweet wines, either for everyday drinking or just on occasion, and you have felt disappointed that most of your options are white (and many of them are of questionable quality), then I have good news for you!  I recently got to taste Rosa Regale and found it charming.  It's a high quality, light, red, semi-sweet, sparkling wine.

Rosa Regale comes from the Piedmont region of northern Italy and is classified as a Brachetto d'Acqui DOCG.  This places it at the top of the Italian wine quality system, so it has a reliable pedigree.  Rosa Regale is 100% Brachetto, a red grape.  Skin contact during fermentation is brief, so the wine gains some red fruit flavors, but remains light and low in tannin.

Here are the details:

Color:  Pale ruby.

Nose:  Fresh red fruits, especially cherry and strawberry, with a hint of melon, and some floral characteristics.

Palate:  Semi-sweet, high acid, low tannin, with fresh, juicy red-fruit flavors, and a hint of earthiness.  7% abv.

I drink very little sweet wine, but I have to admit this one is nice.  The sweetness and the acidity balance well, as do the fruit characteristics and the hint of earthiness.  It's sweet, but not syrupy or desserty - just light and crisp and easy to drink.  At about $18 per bottle, it's not an everyday wine, but it does occupy a niche with few players (that I know of).  There aren't that many good quality, sweet, red sparklers.

I'm fairly new to the world of Brachetto d'Aqui, but Rosa Regale reminds me of a red version of Moscato d'Asti, a semi-sweet, sparkling white wine.  After all, they both come from Piedmont and both have their own DOCGs.  In fact, some friends of mine, who recently got married and are big Moscato d'Asti fans, asked me to recommend a celebratory wine for them.  This meant something they would like that they hadn't tried, something a bit out of the ordinary, and a few dollars more expensive than what they would normally spend.  If you like sweet and semi-sweet wines, I'll tell you what I told them:  you need to try this!

Wine Infographic: Recognizing Top Quality German Wine

As a follow-up to my German Wine Cheat Sheet from a few weeks ago, I'm sharing this guest infographic, which comes from the German auction house Auctionata. Since they deal in fine wine, they've developed this guide for international drinkers. They're going to help us navigate those complex German wine labels, which offer a wealth of information about the wine.  You can download a pdf of this graphic from Auctionata's blog at this link.

A Tuscan wine with simple, Tuscan-inspired food

This week I planned to write about Banfi's Rosso di Montalcino.  As usual, I was tasting it on a weeknight, after a long day of work, having given very little thought to what was for dinner or whether it would go with a Tuscan wine.  Following the general rule that "what grows together goes together," I figured I needed some classic Tuscan flavors.  Following my rule that if I get home from work after 6pm and intend to do a serious tasting I will not spend more than 30 minutes making dinner, I needed simple food that would come together quickly.  A 2-minute Google search confirmed my expectation that marinara sauce and salami were good options.  It turns out that truffles are classically Tuscan as well, which worked in my favor since I happened to have truffle butter at home. With the addition of bread to dip in the marinara, spinach to saute in the truffle butter, and some roasted onions for good measure, we had a meal that would pair nicely with the wine.

3 things I should probably mention:  1)  Roasting onions in the oven is the greatest thing ever, and I can't believe I went so many years without knowing that.  2)  I love the taste of salami, but I don't like greasy foods, so I always cook mine to remove some of the grease.  (Confession:  when I say "cook" I mean "microwave for a minute in between lots of layers of paper towels."  It's not classy, but it works like a charm.)  3)  Cheese would have been an obvious and delicious addition to the spread, but I'm lactose intolerant, so I don't have cheese around the house very often.  (The small amount of truffle butter for the sauteed spinach was not enough to be an issue.)

Finally time to drink!

Rosso di Montalcino is a DOC region in Tuscany, just south of Chianti Classico.  It's made in the same area as its bigger brother Brunello di Montalcino, but Rosso requires less aging, so it is lighter, fruitier, cheaper, and less tannic.  Both are made from 100% Sangiovese grapes.

Here are the details on the Banfi Rosso di Montalcino from 2011:

• Color:  Medium ruby with a hint of garnet.
• On the nose:  Cherry, cranberry, plum, leather, and spice, with more subtle floral and mineral qualities.
• On the palate:  Dry, with flavors that generally match the aromas.  High acid, medium+ tannin, 14% abv.

This wine has a nice balance of fruity and savory characteristics.  The tannin is higher than it seems at first, since the mouth-watering acidity (this is a compliment) masks the tannin somewhat.  It opened up and mellowed out in the glass, so I think you could either drink this now or hold it for another 3-4 years easily. If you're impatient, you could decant it, but you'd miss experiencing the gradual in-the-glass evolution.

All the food paired just fine.  The standouts were the tomato sauce and the salami - no big surprise. Sangiovese really can't be beat when you're eating tomato sauce.  The spices in the salami brought out the spice notes in the wine.  The earthiness of the spinach, truffle butter, and onions were good too. 

My local Spec's on Bay Area stocks this wine and sells it for $20.  At that price, at least in my mind, it's not meant to be a regular weeknight thing, but it doesn't have to be saved for a special occasion either (like you might do with its big brother Brunello).  This is a great in-between wine for when you feel like indulging a little, and not regretting it later.

Italy in Spring on the Cheap: Fontana Candida Terre dei Grifi Frascati

This week I sampled Fontana Candida Terre dei Grifi Frascati, 2012.  It comes from Frascati Secco DOC in the province of Lazio, Rome.  It's a simple weeknight wine, so I paired it with something simple I made for a weeknight dinner.  More on the food in a minute.  First the scoop on the wine.

Grapes:
50% Malvasia di Candia
30% Trebbiano Toscano
10% Malvasia del Lazio
10% Greco

Vinification:  Fermented in stainless steel, then allowed to rest on the lees (dead yeast cells) for 4 months.

Color:  Pale yellow with a hint of green

On the nose:  Citrus with a little pineapple and some minerality.  Just a hint of that slightly "bready" aroma you get with Champagne, due to the lees aging.

On the palate:  Dry, medium body, high acid.

Alcohol:  13%

Now for the food pairing!  I'm a big fan of making random leftovers into something new.  We had hamburger buns leftover from Memorial Day, some eggplant, onion, and spinach in the fridge that were threatening to get funky, some leftover marinara sauce, and basil growing in the yard.  Time for a roasted veggie sandwich! 

I was happy to match an Italian wine with Italian-ish food, and white wine is often a nice choice for a vegetarian meal, but I was worried about the marinara.  I would normally go for a red wine with marinara sauce, because the strong tomato-and-herb flavor can overwhelm white wines.  I needn't have worried.  The amount of sauce on the sandwich didn't phase this wine a bit.  The wine's strong acidity came through, and this ended up a lovely pairing.  The earthy sweetness of the roasted veggies with the brightness of the basil and the fresh crunch of the spinach worked really well with the bright-fruity-earthy qualities in the wine.

To see how far I could push the tomato sauce match-up, I ate a spoonful by itself and then took a sip of the wine.  The wine's flavors were muted, but not totally obscured.  If you're a staunch white-wine-only person (it makes me sad to even type that), you could have this with spaghetti in a pinch.

So here's a recommendation for an inexpensive, weeknight wine, which can pair with all but the strongest of flavors.  It's $8 at the big Spec's on Bay Area Blvd.

(And for those of you with very sharp eyes, yes that IS a Messina Hof tasting glass!)

2 Affordable Italian Reds from the Whole Foods Twitter Tasting

If you've missed the Twitter Tastings organized by Whole Foods Market, you're missing some fun. People from all over taste the same wine and tweet their thoughts. This time around, I was particularly interested in the 2 Italian reds they featured:  Monrosso Chianti (2010) and Verrazzano Rosso, a red blend also from Tuscany (2012).

Cue the Chianti Cheat Sheet:

These 2 Italian wines, Monrosso Chianti and Verrazzano Rosso, come from the same region - Tuscany. Chiantis rank at the highest level of Italy's wine classification system, DOCG.  The Verrazzano Rosso is ranked lower, at the IGT level.  A lower ranking can be both a blessing and a curse, because even though it's ranked technically as lower quality, there are fewer regulations at the IGT level.  DOCGs are strictly regulated in terms of grape variety, alcohol content, aging, etc.  Whereas, the IGT-level winemaker has more freedom to experiment.  For instance, the Monrosso Chianti has to use at least 85% Sangiovese grape juice. The Verrazzano website tells me that their red blend mixes Sangiovese with Merlot (but doesn't give the percentages).

But how do they taste??

Monrosso Chianti 2010 -- Aromas/flavors of cherry, cranberry, and vanilla, with some earthy qualities. Medium, rounded tannins.  Medium-plus acidity, 13.5% alcohol.  Surprisingly smooth and easy to drink for a Chianti.  Chiantis are known for pairing well with food, but this wine could easily be drunk on its own.  It could go with anything from roasted chicken with herbs, to mushroom risotto, to spaghetti and meatballs.  It's totally all-purpose.  It even paired well with an apple-berry crumble that I made, based on this recipe (I used cranberries).

Verrazzano Rosso 2012 -- Earthier, spicier, richer than the Monrosso.  Aromas/flavors of red and black fruits, cocoa, and spice.  Higher in tannin than the Monrosso, but a bit lower in acid.  13.5% alcohol. Heavier, but could still be drunk on its own or paired with food.  This really opened up nicely after it had a chance to breathe in the glass for about 15 minutes.  I'd pair this one with something a little richer and heavier - pot roast, roasted lamb, or something with tomatoes and herbs.

I liked both of these wines.  The best part:  they are less than $15 at Whole Foods.  They are a great value at that price, and versatile enough to go with whatever weeknight meal you're cooking.  Give them a try!

Whole Foods Twitter Tasting Tonight!

Whole Foods has organized another Twitter tasting of Italian wines this evening from 7-8 pm.  Head to Whole Foods and taste these 4 featured wines, which are all under $16.  Then join the conversation about them on Twitter using #WFMwine.

• Caposaldo Pinot Grigio
• Monrosso Chianti 
• Verrazzano Rosso 
• Presto Prosecco

I'll be tasting the reds with some of my favorite wine drinkers, and tweeting my thoughts from @ClearLakeWine.

Here are Whole Foods' notes on the wines I'll be tasting:

Monrosso Chianti – Lavender and cranberry aromas blend in this soft, rich ruby red wine. Gentle tannins, abundant fruit, and a well-balanced finish characterize this textbook Chianti.
Suggested Pairings: Parmigiano Reggiano, grilled salmon, roasted lamb chops, pasta carbonara, pizza, and Puttanesca Pasta

Verrazzano Rosso – This red has complex aromas of fresh fruits and violets followed by Tuscan herbs, black currant and pomegranate flavors that move to a smooth finish.
Suggested Pairings: Pecorino Toscano, osso buco, gnocchi, hummus, rosemary flatbread, and Sun-Dried Tomato and Salami Couscous Salad

Join us tonight!

Whole Foods Market Twitter Tasting

Tonight from 7 - 8pm people from all over the country will be tasting Italian wines from Whole Foods and tweeting about them using #WFMwine.

Come join the conversation with me @ClearLakeWine!  These are the wines we'll be talking about:

They all cost less than $16.  I've included the descriptions provided by Whole Foods below.  Come see what the Twitterverse thinks tonight!

Ruffino Orvieto Classico – Fresh flowers and citrus on the nose are followed by ripe green
apple up front, sassy acidity and a characteristic touch of mineral. The finish is long and
fragrant with almond notes.

Pairings: Piave, shrimp scampi, egg dishes, and Mango Quinoa Salad

Banfi Principessa Gavia Gavi – Vivid aromas of pineapple and tangy green apple are on the
nose, and there is a lovely balancing act between juicy ripe pear notes and bright acidity with a
clean, delicate finish.

Pairings: Robusto, spicy jerk chicken, garlic scallops, and Pineapple-Chicken Kabobs with
Quinoa

Donnafugata Sedàra – Fresh cherry and strawberry aromas give way to cascading notes of sun-
dried cranberries, then black olive then peppercorn. The finish is rich, deep, and rustic.

Pairings: Sottocenere, lamb, mushroom risotto, crusty artisan breads, and Smoky Mushroom
Gratin

Gran Passione Rosso – Ripe blackberry and chocolate-covered cherries distinguish this
delicious aroma. This rich red is juicy with notes of black fruit and a satisfyingly long, dense
finish.

Pairings: Taleggio, dry-aged steaks, shepherd’s pie, chocolate covered strawberries, and Lamb
Stew with Spring Vegetables

Can You Scratch and Sniff Your Way to Better Wine Choices?

Author Richard Betts, Master of Wine, thinks you can. The Essential Scratch and Sniff Guide to Becoming a Wine Expert explains the flavor and structural elements of wine to help consumers find wines they will like, with scratch and sniff spots to illustrate the wine aromas.  The book is short – about 22 pages – with thick cardboard pages and colorful pictures.  It’s quick to read, but you can go back again and again to get more familiar with the smells.  The book includes a fold-out infographic tucked into the back cover (scroll down for a picture), which helps you match the wine aromas you like (which you just figured out from sniffing the book), with actual grapes and regions.

I believe that even a tiny amount of wine education will dramatically benefit a consumer’s buying and drinking experience.  Wine professionals realize that the most challenging thing for the average consumer is to consistently choose bottles they will like.  That’s one reason people tend to buy the same wines over and over again.  Looking at a bottle and accurately predicting what it will taste like requires quite a bit of wine knowledge.  The next best thing is to be able to describe what kind of wine you like to a knowledgeable sales person who can point you to some good options.

But how do you describe what you like?  Wine (like many things) is all about the vocabulary.  You know the tastes and textures you like, but how do you describe something so subjective?  You get familiar with common wine adjectives and how they're used.  Then you and the person in the store will be speaking the same language.

This book takes the reader through all the usual categories of wine flavors – red fruits, black fruits, citrus fruits, stone fruits, tropical fruits, spices, herbs, flavors from oak, wine faults, etc.  The innovation here is the use of scratch and sniff to aid in the descriptions.  After all, how many of us can readily call these smells to mind?  (Calling to mind specific smells is a big part of studying and appreciating wine, and why we all need to practice and improve our scent memory!)

Using scratch and sniff to explain wine aromas is a great idea, but I questioned whether the smelly spots could actually mimic wine aromas well enough.  It turns out many of them do, and a few don’t.

The scratch and sniff areas for these smells were surprisingly true to life:

• Grape
• Red fruit
• Black fruit
• Stone fruit (mainly peach)
• Pear
• Dill (a very sweet version)
• Flowers
• Grass

These smells were less successful:

• Mineral
• Leather
• Bacon
• Butter
• Vanilla

I’m curious about how long the smells will last.  I remember the scratch and sniff books from my childhood losing their scent after a couple of years.

Though this book is short, the information is great, and Richard Betts has done a good job of simplifying a subject that many people find complex and intimidating.  I could see this being a fun coffee table book and conversation piece.  It’s something that could be very useful for a novice, but still fun for an expert.  If I ran a wine bar, I’d buy a few of these and leave them scattered around on the tables.

I started wondering, why don’t wine producers put scratch and sniff stickers directly on the labels?  It turns out that a few have.   Domaine Bourillon Dorléans from the Loire Valley in France put a scratch and sniff label on its Vouvray.  And Mirabeau en Provence worked on a scratch and sniff label at one time also:


I suspect most winemakers would find the scratch and sniff representations of their wine to not smell nearly as good as the wine itself, and maybe not want people to prejudge the wine based on a smelly sticker…

P.S.  Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan’s One-Minute Wine Master is another book that aims to make wine more accessible by helping consumers describe their wine preferences and select wines they will like.  Her book uses a quiz about food and drink preferences to recommend wines.  It also has brief descriptions of lots of different grapes and types of wine, so it contains a lot more information and can work as a handy reference.  Both books are good, but Betts’ scratch-and-sniff approach is for someone who wants a very simple introduction to the subject.  The One-Minute Wine Master is for someone who wants to delve into the subject more deeply.  If Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan's book is the "one-minute" version, Scratch & Sniff is 30 seconds.

That Weird Habanero Wine at HEB

Have you seen (or tasted) the habanero-infused wine at HEB?  I tasted it in the store months ago and bought a bottle to cook with, but it wasn't until recently that I figured out how I wanted to use it.

First, the wine:  it's called Cabanero Red, and it tastes like a fairly inexpensive Cabernet-based blend from California, with flavors of ripe currant, herbs, vegetal notes, and some smokiness.  Because the wine is infused with habanero, you get some heat in the back of your throat on the finish.  It's also moderate on tannins, which can increase the perception of spiciness.  I don't find it very spicy, certainly not too spicy to drink, but I have a high tolerance for heat, so your experience may vary.  According to this article, the wine was produced by HEB in an effort to create more wines that pair well with Tex-Mex food, and I think they achieved their goal.  

The wine could certainly be drunk on its own - it's a decent wine - but I think cooking is where it works best.  I was inspired by this recipe from the New York Times to put together an easy crockpot bean dish using Caberno.  Here's what you need:

Easy Crockpot Pinto Beans with Bacon and Cabanero Red
4 15-oz cans of pinto beans, rinsed
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 medium (or 1/2 of a large) onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 cup chopped white mushrooms
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 large sprigs of rosemary
4 strips of bacon, chopped
2 cups Cabanero Red wine
2 teaspoons lime juice

Dump everything into the crockpot except the lime juice.  Stir it and cook it on low for 6 - 8 hours.  When the time is up, fish out the rosemary sprigs, add the lime juice, and add salt and pepper to taste.

The beans come out tasting like wine, but not in an overpowering way, nor are they particularly spicy.  If you want more than just a hint of heat, you may want to add some chile peppers or cayenne.  I always cook with whatever I have on hand at the time, so feel free to increase, decrease, omit, or substitute ingredients with creative abandon.  This is not a fussy recipe.

I think this wine would also work well in a sweet/spicy glaze, maybe for ham.  What do you think - would you drink this wine, and if so with what?  What would you cook with it?

Happy New Year!

Top Holiday Wines at Whole Foods

Last night I got to taste some of Whole Foods’ Top 10 Holiday Wines along with a delicious cheese plate.  Thanks to Jeanette and Arwen at the Montrose store, for a very educational evening!  (Note:  If you’re really into cheese, go to Whole Foods and talk to Arwen.  She knows her stuff!)  You can read Whole Foods’ description of the 10 wines, along with recommended cheeses and recipes, here.  Whole Foods has a good summary of the wines, so I’ll just add my impressions of the 4 I tasted.

Roger d’Anoia Cava

Cava is a sparkling white wine from Spain, which is made using the same method as Champagne, but with different grapes.  This Cava is dry, but fruity.  I would put it somewhere between a California sparkling wine and Champagne – it’s fruitier and less toasty/bready than Champagne, but not as fruity as a California sparkler.  This may have been my favorite of the evening, and it paired beautifully with the Parrano cheese (as recommended at the link above).  Parrano tastes similar to parmigiano reggiano because it’s made with the same cultures.  This Cava also paired nicely with strawberries, and I think would be good with anything that pairs well with Champagne.  (I have it on good authority that popcorn and Champagne are a good match, so Cava probably is too.)  At $10 per bottle, this is a crazy good deal.

Skouras Anassa

This Greek white wine is made primarily from the Greek grape Moschofilero, though I believe it has some Viognier blended in.  It had a fuller body than I was expecting, with lots of fruit up front and a clean dry finish.  I liked this one better paired with the cheese than I did on its own (not necessarily a criticism – different wines are better at different things).  We paired the Anassa with a Seaside Cheddar (which is not the same as the pairing listed on the site), which was a good match.  The Seaside Cheddar is amazing – so rich and buttery, yet quite sharp – and only sold at Whole Foods.  This wine is also reasonably priced at $12.

Santa Julia Innovacion

This dry red is a Bonarda-Cabernet blend from Argentina, and comes in a 1 liter bottle (instead of the usual 750 ml) for only $10.  It has dark fruit flavors and medium-to-high acid and tannin.  It has many of the flavors of a Cabernet, but is leaner and lighter due to the Bonarda.  It had a touch of bitterness at the finish, but I’d still recommend it at $10, especially with food.  It held its own against the green olives, so you know it can stand up to any strong flavors you might be serving.

We tasted this along with a wonderful cheese called Jasper Hill Cloth-Bound Cheddar.  This cheese won 1^st place at the American Cheese Society, and I can see why!  It’s less sharp and less rich than the Seaside Cheddar, but more earthy, and with a bit of smoke.  (It turns out that the slight smokiness is not from actually being smoked – it’s from the type of mold!)  It reminded me of a cross between white cheddar and smoked Gouda.  Fantastic.

Mat Kearney Verse and Chorus Napa Valley Red

This rich, fruit-forward red had lots of black currant and plum flavors, with some earthiness – think nuts or coffee.  It was moderate in both acid and tannin, and would be a crowd-pleaser I think.  At $25 it was the most expensive of the wines we tasted, but it was also pretty darn yummy.  We tasted it with Emmi Le Gruyere (as recommended on the website), a nutty Swiss cheese which paired nicely.

(I've been thinking lately that saltier cheeses (like cheddar and parmesan) work better with white wines, while creamier, less sharp and salty cheeses (like brie, blue cheese, or swiss) work better with red wines.  I'll try to notice this more in the future and report back...)

All these wines would be fine choices at a holiday party or dinner, but the cheeses were the star of the night for me, and a good reminder that the right wine and the right cheese can really bring out the best in each other!

Party Wines on a Budget

On his popular blog, Spec's fine wine buyer Bear Dalton has recently posted a collection of budget wine recommendations.  He covers reds, whites, and bubbles.  All of his picks would be great for serving at holiday parties and are $12 or less.  And of course, they're all available at the downtown Spec's.  I haven't checked whether they're available at the Bay Area location (which is my preferred store in Clear Lake), but you can use the Spec's website to find out.

Check out his advice here:
"Uh Oh, It's Party Time (Budget Edition)"

Tasting and Comparing 3 Chiantis

A friend in the industry recently sent me 3 Chiantis to taste (this was the original inspiration for the Chianti Cheat Sheet).  So I had a few friends over, and we tasted the wines side by side with some snacks - whole grain bread, herbs in olive oil for dipping, feta, turkey pepperoni, and giant green marinated olives.  Here's what we tasted and what we learned...

#1:  First we tasted a basic Chianti DOCG, 2011, made by Cecchi.  It had aromas of tart red fruits, like cherry and cranberry, and some herbal qualities.  Typical of Chianti, it had high acid, medium-plus tannin, medium body, and medium alcohol (13%).  

This was the underdog of the night.  No one disliked it, but it was the least favorite until we realized how well it went with the food.  Chianti is usually food-friendly, but this wine's strong flavors, acid, and tannin could even hold their own against the marinated olives.  This is a wine that will not get lost when served with strongly flavored dishes.  It's available at the Bay Area Spec's for only $9, which is a good value.

#2:  The second wine tasted was the Banfi Chianti Superiore from 2011.  Remember from the cheat sheet that "superiore" means that this wine, by law, has a higher minimum alcohol requirement than basic Chianti.  (This doesn't always mean that it has a higher final alcohol content - in this case the alcohol level for the Banfi was the same as for wine #1, the Cecchi - 13% abv.)

Compared to the Cecchi Chianti (#1), the Banfi Chianti had more black fruit aromas, richer fruit character, more vanilla aromas (which means more oak aging), slightly less tannin, and was generally smoother and more approachable.  

The richer fruit flavors and easy-drinking quality of this wine made it the initial favorite of the night.  If you're drinking a glass of wine without a meal, this is an excellent choice.  It would be good with food too, but couldn't stand up to the strongest flavors that the Cecchi could.  I'd confidently serve the Banfi with most Italian dishes, but if I were having puttanesca sauce, I'd grab the Cecchi.  The Downtown Spec's sells the Banfi Chianti for only $10, which is a steal, because this stuff is delicious.  

#3  The third wine was Villa Cerna's Chianti Classico Riserva from 2010.  Remember from the cheat sheet that "classico" indicates this wine is from the oldest and most traditional part of the Chianti region, which often indicates better quality.  "Riserva" indicates a longer aging requirement.

As expected from a "classico," this wine was the most concentrated and full-bodied of the three.  It had darker, richer, earthier flavors, more evidence of oak aging (where the "riserva" comes in), and the strongest tannins.  This makes sense because this wine was built to age longer than the other two - you could drink it 10 years from now with no problem.  If you drink it now, consider aerating or decanting.  The alcohol level, at 14%, was slightly higher than the other two.  

Everyone liked this one too, and for some it was the best of the three.  Unfortunately, I'm not aware of place in Houston that sells it, but the internet tells me the average price is $22 - quite reasonable.

I made my friends guess the prices after tasting the three Chiantis.  Everyone correctly predicted that #1 was the least expensive and that #2 and #3 each stepped up in price.  However, for each wine they guessed they would have had to pay about 5 to 10 dollars more than what the bottle really cost, which is basically the definition of a successful wine purchase, right?