My colleague Jim Gordon who currently edits Wines & Vines magazine just pointed me to an article on their web site that made my jaw hit the table. Reporting from the recent meeting of the American Society for Wine Economists, writer Peter Mitham describes a presentation by researcher Robin Goldstein, who seems to have performed a sting operation on the Wine Spectator Restaurant Awards and exposed them as a total farce, as part of his ongoing investigations on the perceptions of value and quality in wine. In summary: 1. Researcher invents fake restaurant in Italy. 2. Researcher builds web site for fake restaurant. 3. Researcher constructs wine list of the lowest scoring Italian wines from Wine Spectator in the last decade. 4. Researcher enters Wine Spectator Restaurant Awards. 5. Fake restaurant wins Wine Spectator Award of Excellence. I haven't laughed so hard at a piece of wine news in years. It's truly unbelievable. Read the article at Wines & Vines, and then go read the the researcher's own blog post on the subject, which includes text from the Spectator's reviews of the wines on his list. It's hysterical. If this is true, it completely destroys any shred of credibility that these awards might have.

*Ed. Note*

Guest blogging on Good Grape is Arthur Black, who occasionally, with lightheartedness, goes by the nom de plume, Arturo Negro.  Arthur is a Master Sommelier candidate well in tune, from his professional life, with Rodney Strong wines, the winery from which this new allocated offering comes.  Unbiased, cool with an insane palate, Arthur gives his take on the new Rockaway wine that releases on September 1 from RSV.  Find out more information at the web site, or sign up for the list.

Having the opportunity to assess Rockaway, a new endeavor of Rodney Strong, is an honor. Over the past several years I’ve had the pleasure of selling a lot of Rodney Strong in restaurants when I was still on the floor, in wine shops during my off premise retail stint, and I’m happy to say the wholesaler that I am currently a Director of Education for, National Wine & Spirits, is fortunate to be the purveyor of Rodney Strong wines here in Indiana.

Some may assume that I have an obvious bias, considering my history with the brand, but those that know me, would certainly tell you that my sincere appreciation of objective wine assessment has gotten me in trouble a number of times, because I am quick to speak my mind and am usually quite candid. The truth is I do not care about a wine producer’s reputation, whether they are “savvy” or trendy, the prices they may demand, or even if they have wines with multiple 90+ scores. To me, it is all about what is in the glass. Now, that being said, and in my opinion, Rodney Strong has continuously produced great, well-priced wines. They show the pedigree and class that California can yield, while deviating from increased industry trends of outrageous and undeserved price increases (thank you) and the growing tendency of many wineries to produce homogenous and monotonous wines that all taste the same and could very well be made from anything and from any where (thank you, thank you).

Since far too many people fail to appreciate the visual beauty of the things we ingest before swallowing them, let us start with how the Rockaway looks. To the eye, Rockaway, entirely opaque in its concentration, is like looking at a glass of liquid black, with a hue of aubergine (by using “aubergine,” instead of “eggplant,” the reader should assume I know ONE French word) that paints the crystal bulb of your wine glass while you twist the stem with your finger tips. Since the “tears” or “legs” snail pace their way down the inside of the glass and show an obvious blood-purple in their center, you can easily gather that this wine is not only high in alcohol and full in body, but will have plenty of extract, leaving whomever partakes of this bottle with some real purple lips.

On the nose, it shows ripe and fleshy primary aromas of dark currants and cassis with brandied black cherries, as well as soft notes of dark ground espresso, cocoa, and some sweet oak showing as vanilla extract, graham cracker cinnamon, and baking spices. Pretty cool!

Enough visual and odiferous meditation, lets drink this thing; assuming high levels of concentration from the look of the wine, one is certainly not disappointed when tasting this wine. I’m not typically in the school of “bigger is better,” but in this case I’ll make an exception because Rockaway shows what most “big” wines lack…..the concentration is well balanced by appropriate acidity, therefore the wine maintains strong structural integrity, as well as sound representation of fruits that parallel those perceived on the nose, and great tannins; sweet and ripe, coating the palette, as should be expected considering the grape variety’s nature, but not austere, unripe, nor aggressive.

I only have one criticism and it’s that a wine that shows and registers at 15%+ alcohol, whether or not it’s balanced by fruit and acid or is agreeable to this person or that critic’s palette, is not really showing Alexander Valley typicity (it also makes it hard to finish a bottle and walk a straight line….just kidding, in my case, my body’s resilience to ABV is legendary…or so I think).

For the most part, I am very pleased with the Rockaway and those I shared it with instantly noticed its obvious pedigree and multifaceted character. It certainly has layers, “like an onion,” or perhaps, “like a parfait,” depending on whether you like to quote Shrek or Donkey of course, and after all, who doesn’t like parfait! This wine is a solid, full bodied, California wine, that shows some wicked fruit and integrated oak, as well as considerable concentration in the right way {that is phenolically ripe tannins and not the mega-purple or stemish breed (look up adulteration and concentration to see what I mean)}, and definitely needs some aeration time and will most certainly benefit from some cellaring time. Point – buy multiple bottles and try one every 3-5 years to watch it develop. Rodney Strong, in the words of 2-Pac, “you are appreciated!”

Arturo Negro

Most people, when they come visit me in San Francisco and ask to be taken to wine country, assume that they're going to Napa, but at least half the time, that's definitely not where we end up. These well meaning tourists aren't the only ones who seem to forget that Northern California has many different "wine countries." Napa casts a long shadow, as it were. I've got lots of love for every piece of wine country we've got, and a special place in my heart for Sonoma County, both because it is the place of my birth, but also because I think sometimes it gets short shrift compared to its more famous neighbor. Sonoma County is several different wine regions rolled up into one -- from the chilly fog of the Sonoma Coast and Carneros, to the cool Green Valley and Russian River Valley, to the warmer climes of Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma Mountain, Alexander Valley, and the Sonoma Valley -- there's something for everyone in Sonoma. The main problem however, is that all these regions are spread out over a wide area, much wider than the relatively (in comparison) compact Napa Valley. So experiencing the breadth of Sonoma can be time consuming, no matter how fulfilling it ends up being. So while it's a good idea for wine lovers to pay more attention to Sonoma in general, there is one weekend this year when any self respecting wine lover shouldn't be thinking of anything else: The Sonoma Wine Country Weekend. The first event of its kind, this weekend celebration of Sonoma County wine is a combination of what have been two separate annual events up until now: The Sonoma County Showcase of Wine and Food and the Sonoma Valley Harvest Wine Auction. These two events have been combined into a single weekend that is the single best opportunity in existence for anyone to learn a thing or two about Sonoma wine. The weekend starts on Friday August 29th, with winemaker lunches at various wineries around the valley. On Saturday the 30th, the grand tasting will take place from 11 AM to 4 PM, where more than a hundred Sonoma County wineries will offer their wines for tasting along with food from more than 60 of the regions top chefs and artisan food purveyors. Sommeliers (apparently some of them famous) will be conducting wine seminars, and almost every wine that you might taste is available for sale (or shipping back home) with the help of the event staff. The evening of Friday the 29th and Saturday the 30th will also involve winemaker dinners at some of Sonoma's most spectacular wineries, including Pride Mountain Vineyards at the top of the Mayacamas mountains. And if that weren't enough, on Sunday the live Harvest Wine Auction, whose proceeds go to local charities, offers chances at bragging rights and some amazing prizes (and wines) for those who can afford to be generous, as well as a blockbuster meal cooked by some serious Sonoma culinary heavyweights. Rumor has it that there will be just a tad of wine poured at this event as well. While attendance at the auction and dinner on Sunday is a somewhat pricey proposition ($650 a head) the rest of the weekend's events are a relative steal at between $75 and $150 bucks. This is a huge opportunity to soak in the breadth and depth of Sonoma County wine without spending 4 days and 8 hours in the car zipping all over the place. It comes highly recommended by yours truly. Find out everything you need to know on the event web site. Sonoma Wine Country Weekend August 29-31, 2008 MacMurray Ranch, Cline Cellars, (and individual wineries) MacMurray Ranch 9015 Westside Road, Healdsburg, CA 95448 Tickets, which can be purchased online, are priced as follows: Friday Winemaker Lunches: $75 Friday Winemaker Dinners: $160 Grand Tasting: $150 Saturday Winemaker Dinners: $160 Sunday Auction: $650 Additional VIP packages are available. This event will almost certainly sell out, so purchase your tickets now. September just before harvest is one of the most beautiful times to be in Sonoma County.

In a bold and prescient move, what I believe is a first for an allocated wine, Rockaway, a high-end $75 Cabernet release from Rodney Strong’s new winery-within-a-winery concept, is including select wine bloggers as a part of their release strategy. 

.

Participating with me this week (and making history) in a coordinated announcement for the release of the brand on September 1st are the following bloggers:

Dr. Debs from Good Wine Under $20

Joe from 1WineDude

Megan from Wannabe Wino

Kory from Winepeeps

Tim from winecast.net

Renee from Feed Me / Drink Me

Arthur Black, Master Sommelier Candidate, Guest Blogging at Good Grape

It will be an exciting week with each of these bloggers taking their own unique perspective on the wine, the release and the story.  Keep an eye out for blog posts from each of these bloggers between Monday, August 18th to Thursday, August 21st.

I will have two posts up this week discussing the release—one a back-story and another will be a review.  Arthur Black will be posting on Good Grape on Monday, August 18th to kick off the week. 

Please join me in congratulating Rockaway on the pending release of their new wine and for being innovative visionaries in embracing wine bloggers as a part of their launch to market!  Check out their site and join the list for first crack at this luscious Cab.

The birth of a wine region is a fascinating thing to watch, and I'm sure an even more fascinating process to be a part of. Much of the wine that we drink comes from regions that have been established anywhere from decades to centuries ago, but the quest for great wine and great places to grow it (not to mention the changing whims of the global climate) means that there are always new frontiers when it comes to wine growing. All new wine regions begin the same -- with a pioneering spirit and a hell of a lot of determination. Someone decides that a certain place is the right spot to grow wine grapes, and they stake a lot of sweat and money on whatever knowledge they've got backing up that decision, whether it be a hunch, or a GIS enabled geologic survey. Eventually, the initial prospector may be joined by others, especially if he or she manages to survive and produce a product that doesn't suck. For a time, these early farmers and winemakers operate out of sheer passion and determination. They need no more organization than their own collegiality or happenstance might offer. It is enough that they are growing and making wine in the place they dream of doing so. But with enough success, and enough producers, questions of legitimacy and marketability inevitably arise. That is to say, eventually, it seems to make sense to make the wine region "official" and to use its name as a way of distinguishing the wine grown in that region, from wine grown elsewhere. At the very least, it makes sense to agree on a name for this place that everyone can use. At the most, it may make sense to establish rules and regulations that determine the quality and nature of the wine made in the region. But when exactly does it make sense to do this? In the case of new regions emerging within or alongside existing ones, there are legislative answers to this question already. But when the region is entirely new, this question gets very interesting. The winemakers of Guadalupe Valley and the Mexican government are currently wrestling with the issues surrounding this question at this very moment. The Government of the State of Baja has suggested that the fledgling wine region adopt regional appellations and a set of regulations along the lines of the Denomination of Origin laws in Spain, Italy, or France. It's easy to see how the region could benefit from such laws. They add credibility to any wines that carry the designation on the label, and the wines can be marketed to the world under specific regional names, with guarantees of quality. In short, such regulations could help increase prices and demand for Guadalupe Valley wines. On the other hand, say many of the vintners, no one has any idea what the boundaries of the region should be, what the wine regulations ought to require or forbid, or how to measure the quality of this new region's wines. And frankly, they have a point. We wine lovers are so used to the codified traditions of our global wine regions. We know that Brunello is required to be 100% Sangiovese, and that Burgundy must be 100% Pinot Noir, but at some point people had to decide that this was so. Of course, those decision makers had many decades (or more) of winemaking traditions to back up their regulations. Who is going to decide what the permitted grape varieties are in the Guadalupe Valley? And more importantly how on earth could someone decide that so early in the region's evolution as a wine locality? And what is the definition of quality in a region where only in the last couple of years have global critics even suggested that there might be high quality grapes being grown there? These are tough questions, and scary ones to contemplate a bureaucrat or some other ministry official forcing on a burgeoning wine region. For now it may be best to simply make the geographic region more official, and wait for the perspective of some history to guide more definite judgments about what will make for great Mexican wine. Read the full story.

For the last 18 or so hours, and for some people it may still be so, Vinography has been deader than a doornail, thanks to a botched network upgrade by my hosting provider. I'm sorry for the inconvenience, and I thank you for your patience. This is only the third or fourth time Vinography has gone down in about 5 years, so while it's incredibly annoying, I'm trying to keep it in perspective. The irony of this downtime is that just two days ago I upgraded my Movable Type installation to the new release which dramatically improved the performance of the site for you, my readers. In particular, I know many of you have suffered through waits of 30 seconds to sometimes 3 or 4 minutes when posting comments to the site. This performance problem has now been resolved, and comments post in just a few seconds now, which is a huge relief to me and hopefully to you as well. Thanks for your continued readership. I now return you to regularly scheduled programming.

Within the construct of the same situation, I have now run the journalistic gamut. I have had the misfortune of having a quote from my blog badly taken out of context in a front-page article in the Indianapolis Star and I was a recipient of some amazing hospitality because of the same quote.

Sometimes blessings come disguised.

Late in May I received an email from a reporter, Jolene Ketzenberger, from the Indianapolis Star, she had taken a quote from a post I did on Indiana winery darling, Oliver winery, from March of 2007, in which I said, “Oliver makes a lot of wine that would make a staunch wine lover cry in their Bordeaux” and asked me for some additional comment about Indiana wine relative to the national stage for an article she was writing.  With a dappling of naiveté, I obliged her.

In my reply to the reporter, I was careful to note the differences between vinifera wines and cordial wines, though I did not necessarily rebut her isolated use of the quote, which in and of itself does not stand-alone.  The fact is that Oliver makes very high-quality and well-regarded wine across their line-up—traditional varietals like Cab’s and Zins, hybrid varietals like Chardonel and Chambourcin, and some cordial style wines that fly off the shelves, wildly winning in the court of public opinion.

When the article published, what ended up on the front-page of the newspaper was your truly playing the black hat spoil to an article celebrating Indiana wineries.

Not exactly what I had imagined.  Though I should have known better given I have my own Journalism degree, I chalked it up as one of those things …

Imagine my surprise a couple of days later when I get an email from Bill Oliver, owner of Oliver Winery, inviting me down for a visit.  Bill, it seems, takes particular delight in converting critics. 

After I pulled back the curtain and provided Bill with Jolene’s original email, my response and the original blog post, I think all settled out in terms of my position on Oliver, which is that of an enthusiast supporter.  One of Wine Business Monthly’s Hottest Brands in 2004 is still a gem of the Midwest and a winery with not only momentum on its side, but also a commitment to excellence in quality.

One of the things I take great pride in is that when I take shots on my blog, they are all highly defensible and an opinion I will fall on my sword for.  Therefore, it was with disappointment that something that was attributed to me was not defensible based on context.

The air cleared, Bill Oliver kept open his invite to visit the winery and I accepted—but for all practical purposes it was a junket--a dubiously gray area for journalists let alone bloggers.

We set the date for this past Thursday, August 14th and Bill very graciously allowed me to bring five other guests—four members of my team at Compendium Blogware and my sister-in-law, a dyed-in-the-wool wine lover at the age of 23. 

The treatment we received at Oliver was as close as I have ever received to perfect hospitality.  Bill Oliver spent the entire afternoon and evening with us conducting a personal tour of the winery and the operations.  Dennis Dunham, winemaker, also joined us as well.  Comments on the visit from my team ranged from “one of the best days of my adult life” to “amazing—something I’ll always remember.” I don’t mean to overstate the case, but these quotes came from Twentysomething women, a tough crowd to impress. I manage them everyday, I know.

In a delightful, but completely at ease bit of choreography, they had three tasting stations set-up at various points in the facility, the attendant cheese and crackers, and we sampled through a large segments of their wine list—from a beautiful and crisp champagne to their Gen. Y brands, all perfectly balanced and enjoyable wines. 

Given that I was with folks in their early to mid-twenties who all appreciate wine, but are still in the early stages of learning mode, my lone regret is I don’t think they appreciated the subtly and fun of doing a barrel sample with a wine thief, which we did, right after trying their amazing ’05 Cab, having started with champagne and then enjoying a nice quaffer from the Valdiguie grape, an inspired choice and eminently drinkable wine that may very well build a following where Beaujolais cannot. 

Having taken a tour of the bottling line and the production facilities, and sampled to the point of warmth and giggles from the woman on my team, we took the seven-mile trip to the Creekbend Vineyard, Oliver’s estate vineyard where we took a spin through the vines and enjoyed an amazing dinner under the setting sun.

The food was delicious, prepared by Oliver’s Tasting Room Manager and personal chef, Heidi.  Enjoyed under perfect outdoor temperatures on white linen tablecloth covered picnic tables, it seemed like a lifestyle article from Gourmet magazine, where friends, wine, food and photographs are shared for vicarious readers. 

Gargantuan bacon wrapped shrimp, nicely grilled with a tarragon aioli, a fantastic canapé of zucchini with goat cheese, chicken on a bed of roasted summer corn, roasted and halved tomatoes with basil, and fresh green beans lightly tossed comprised the menu.  It was the kind of summer harvest meal that would turn Californians into Midwesterners based on the delicious bounty—all enjoyed with Oliver Chardonel, available in the tasting room for the first time on Friday, August 15th and a Rose that makes a Rose fan out of me, a non-Rose drinker.

Dessert was grilled peaches with blackberries in light syrup over homemade vanilla bean ice cream with the Oliver dessert wine made from Vidal Blanc, a wine that will give Inniskillin a run for its money. 

Was this trip a junket?  A visit designed to influence and sway?  Absolutely.  Did I need to be swayed before hand?  Absolutely not.  Am I an avowed Oliver Winery lover for the ages?  You bet I am.  Does it bother me that I gained a favor because of my blog?  Not at all.

Through the course of this interaction with the winery, I was able to expose members of my team to wine in a highly personal way, we all connected with Bill and his winemaker Dennis on a human level, we shared laughs, an almost instant shared connection around wine, and enjoyed the conviviality that goes along with a life well lived when wine is enjoyed with food.

Bill Oliver shared this opportunity with me and I shared this opportunity with others.  Initiated from a misplaced quote in a humdrum newspaper, something magical happened this week with wine at the center of the action.

My biggest takeaway was that the things all passionate wine lovers find endearing in the grape, the larger social context to meaningful interactions with something beautiful in the bottle, isn’t something that is isolated to Europe, California, Oregon, or even New York.  It is something that occurs at all wineries that take the wine experience seriously and who give of themselves so generously to others. 

Bill Oliver converted five other people to this genteel way of thinking through charm and hospitality and that is a gift that you cannot put a price on, junket or no junket.

Heritage plays out in many ways in the Napa Valley. There are only a few remaining families that have been farming in the valley since Prohibition, and even those that have tenures lasting more than three decades are increasingly being supplanted by new blood or corporate interests. Some of those families that have left the valley after decades often move on to other enterprises after cashing out on their vineyard investments. However, it's tough to abandon Napa Valley once you've lived and loved there for so long. Winemaker Justin Meyer moved his family to the Anderson Valley in 1999 after more than 35 years of making wine in Napa Valley with a vision of producing world-class Port-style wine and establishing a family estate that could be carried on by future generations. Despite this move, the family never truly left Napa, as it continued (and still continues) to farm the same vineyard that in some ways is responsible for the fate of the entire Meyer clan. Justin Meyer was one of the great icons of the modern California wine industry and one of its greatest success stories. Meyer thought he was destined for a life of prayer and service when he joined the Christian Brothers religious order in the late 1950's, but a twist of fate led to him being sent to work at the order's winery in Napa in 1964. That fateful move was the beginning of a forty-year career in the wine industry. After working for several years at Christian Brothers with the famous Brother Timothy, he left the order to marry a woman named Bonny that he had fallen in love with, and with literally a dollar to his name, he co-founded a little winery that he and partner Ray Duncan decided to call Silver Oak. The rest, as they say, is history. Justin spent 28 years at Silver Oak and built it into one of the world's most sought-after wine brands. During that time, Meyer, who was a lover of Port, purchased some bulk tawny port on the market and started to make small batches of the stuff under a new label: Meyer Family Cellars. The port was for friends and family, and was also sold in small quantities at the Silver Oak winery to those in the know. During this time, Meyer raised a family with Bonny, whose name was also applied to a piece of vineyard land adjacent to Conn Creek that Meyer purchased for his wife in 1974. From an early age, this couple's son Matt Meyer knew that he wanted to be a winemaker and winegrower like his father. Unlike in his father's day, the way to do that was pretty straightforward for Matt, who went to U.C. Davis for a degree in Viticulture, and then began working immediately with his father on turning the family winery into something more than just a little port hobby. The family purchased vineyards in the Yorkville Highlands in 1999 and planted Syrah. Justin Meyer passed away in 2002, leaving the winery under the direction of Matt and his new wife, Karen, a winemaker whom he met while working a harvest in New Zealand in 2004. While their primary focus was growing a business and a brand in the Yorkville highlands, the family took special care to maintain the vineyard from which Meyer had made some of the most famous single vineyard wines for Silver Oak (and for Napa Valley) for more than a decade (1979-1991). As Meyer Family Cellars gradually settled into a working rhythm and predictable operations, the family decided that the time had come to produce a wine that would honor in equal parts Justin and his wife Bonny -- him with a world-class Cabernet, her with the honor of being its namesake. Bonny's Vineyard last produced a wine in 1991. Since then the family continued to farm it, and completely replanted the vineyard in 1999, making the first harvest of new fruit and inaugurating this project in 2003, the first time that the vineyard has produced a wine in 12 years. Harvested in mid-September (notably early for Oakville) the grapes for this wine were selected from small bunches of even smaller berries, and destemmed before being crushed. After a day of soaking at cold temperatures to extract color and flavors from the skins, the grapes and juice began fermentation which lasted 10 days before the wine was pressed. It completed its primary and then secondary fermentations in stainless steel before being moved to 100% new American Oak barrels where it aged for a lengthy 34 months before bottling. During that time it was racked once a year (the process where the wine is carefully poured off the sediments that have accumulated in the barrel). The wine was not fined, but was filtered before bottling. If the pedigree of this wine is not enough to pique a wine lovers interest, two salient facts about its winemaking should gain the attention of those serious about California Cabernet. The first is the daring choice to age the wine in only American Oak, a practice which is increasingly rare in California, and even more so in Napa Valley. The second is the fact that this wine weighs in at only 13.19% alcohol, which, like the choice of oak, is neither good nor bad in itself, but is certainly even more uncommon for Napa Cabernet. Which brings me to the bottom line on this wine. Those looking for a wine that defies the stereotypes of Napa Cabernet while at the same time upholding its reputation for being some of the tastiest wine on the planet shouldn't miss their chance to experience the first example of what will likely be a highly sought after wine. Full disclosure: I received this wine as a press sample. Tasting Notes: Dark garnet in the glass, this wine has a nose of luxurious chocolate and cherry aromas. In the mouth it is nothing short of gorgeous. Beautifully smooth and lithe on the tongue, the wine swirls with great acidity that carries flavors of cherry, mint, chocolate, cedar and tobacco across the palate in several waves of pleasurable, layered flavors. The finish soars off the back of the palate effortlessly and endlessly. An incredibly impressive first release that Justin Meyer could not help but be proud of. Food Pairing: This wine epitomizes the concept of delicate strength, which means it's rich enough for grilled lamb on rosemary skewers, but not likely to overwhelm more subtle dishes either. A very nice food wine. Overall Score: Between 9 and 9.5 How Much?: $135 This wine is being released on August 31st in limited quantities, and I believe it will likely only be available to members of the winery's mailing list. You can sign up on their web site to purchase up to three bottles.

Tonight is the 4th anniversary of Wine Blogging Wednesday, our monthly virtual tasting. And for the 48th edition, founder Lenn Thompson has asked we go back to our wine roots and taste wines we drank when we first got into wine.

Like many wine lovers, my journey started with California jug wines. Since I came of age in California during the early 1980’s, many of these jugs accompanied meals through my last couple years of college. Brands such as Almaden,  Italian Swiss Colony, Paul Mason and Inglenook were regulars but the first jug to become a “house wine” were from Gallo.

The first wine book I picked up, for a whopping $1.95, was the Signet Book of Inexpensive Wine by Susan Lee. My original copy was thrown away many years ago but I picked up another copy at a used book store earlier this year as part of my research for my book, And browsing the “United States” section of this book tonight, I see Gallo’s Hearty Burgundy in the “Best Buy” category (3 stars). This was my go-to red and the first wine I picked up for our roots tasting tonight.

Today Hearty Burgundy is part of Gallo’s “Twin Valley” brand while it’s white cousin Chablis Blanc is now in the ultra-budget “Livingston Cellars” brand. Since the latter was only available in 1.5L and 3L bottles, I passed on trying this wine tonight but did get a bottle of Hearty Burgundy; my first in over 20 years.

Gallo Family Vineyards, “Twin Valley”, Hearty Burgundy NV ($5) - Deep garnet in color with aromas of red raspberry, geranium and fennel. Bright red fruit flavors with cherry pie filling in the mid-palate finishing with moderate tannins. Clean and state of the art for industrial wine blends but seems unnatural (what Gary would term as “fakey-fake”).

13% ABV
Synthetic cork closure
Score: 77
[rating 2.5/5]

Since my former house white of Chablis Blanc was only available in industrial quantities, I decided to pick up my first house Zinfandel. Back in 1981, this was from Sebastiani which I bought on sale for $2.50 a bottle.  Since Sebastiani has since rebooted their brand as a limited production, premium product, I settled for my second place Zin from the 1980’s: Sutter Home.

Yes, from the house that was built from white Zinfandel but back in the early 1980’s, they made some pretty interesting red Zins. My favorite being their reserves tasted on my frequent visits to Napa Valley during my college years. But their regular release was also pretty good from memory so I thought it would be interesting to revisit this wine.

Sutter Home, Zinfandel, California 2005 ($5) - Medium ruby in color with aromas of black cherry, strawberry and sage. Fresh red cherry and strawberry fruit flavors, some black pepper, finishing with supple tannins. A very light style of Zinfandel but a decent red for pizza and pasta dishes.

13.5% ABV
Composite cork closure
Score: 81
[rating 3/5]

An interesting tasting that shows how my tastes have evolved since the days of the first Reagan administration. But it’s also good to see both wines being clean, fresh and drinkable… although I would not drink these wines daily as I used to.

Thanks to Lenn for his leadership over these last 4 years and I’m hoping to blog WBW 96 with him and other friends in 2012.

Dateline:  August 12, 2008

Today will go down in the wine industry annals as turning point in the wine industry, a day of reckoning, an inflection point for the future of the business.  Many might liken it to a day of great tragedy, yet others will view it as a day of triumph.  If that sounds like war, with winners and losers, perhaps that is apt; great tragedy for one always creates hope for another.

Southern Wine & Spirits and Glazers, two of the largest distributors nationally, have merged, creating a new class--a super-tier of national wine distribution.

Friends, if you’re a small distributor, winery, retail shop owner or passionate wine enthusiast, today is your Independence day, your day of freedom.

It is simple. A merger of this kind will take at least two years to sort out, with untold collateral damage to employees and customers.  Am I grave dancing?  Not at all.  I am, however, looking at the big picture and realize that a gaping hole has been created in the market, the kind of hole that does not gently request to be filled, but demands to be filled by smaller, middle-tier distributors who have just been handed a gift--a gift of certain growth.  With this growth comes greater opportunity for wine shops, which cascades to greater opportunity for consumers, not to mention the robust development that this will yield in the growing online channel for brands seeking an outlet.

1) mega-mergers almost never work based on a) culture b) poor execution in integration c) ego

2) When Sr. leadership makes decisions based on creating value for stakeholders who are not ultimately a customer it is a mistake of colossal proportions. 

3) Innovation always, always occurs at small companies and incremental, leveraged gain occurs at large companies

Simply, this merger is not about wine, it is about dollars, supply-chain and logistics.

Pure and simple.  This is not about wine.  It could be television sets or dairy.  It is about moving product from here to there.

This reality from the perspective of a box pusher begets opportunity for those that have customers, real customer relationships.

Large distributors think it’s about logistics and delivery to their customer, but it’s also about relationships and most large distributors treat their sales people like disposable goods and this mega merger is going to cause roils of panic at the rep. level.

All the better for others who can pick up the pieces.

Read the excerpted quotes at Wine & Spirits Daily and tell me where you find a quote about delivering value to the customer.  Sure lip service is given to the retail tier, but at the end of the day, it is about wringing more profit from large brands to large retailers. 

Much has been made of the consolidation wave and the growth of larger wine concerns, but has Fosters taught us anything?  Brand management on a large scale is very difficult to do successfully and represents such a small percentage of the number of wine brands in the U.S.

If I am a small winery, a small distributor, a small retailer, I am making a bet on growth and doing so by providing value where value has just been distracted—from the small retailer and the ultimate end-user, the consumer.

Is today a great day for wine?  For many, it will be, and I am not talking about the silver-tongued, gold-pocketed execs at the new mega-distributor.

*Ed Note* For a good contrarian read to the “World is Flat” try “Small-Mart Revolution” by Michael H. Shuman

My wife is in Hoboken, New Jersey this week, traveling for business, and an occasion, a dinner meeting with a published wine author, came up in which my wife sent me the wine list for three restaurants and asked me to choose the restaurant with the best published wine list for a dinner on Thursday night.  You know, all the better to impress this author, who has chops.

Well, first of all, this is a parlor game of the highest order-- which wine list will have the most accurate wine list in person, as listed on their web site?  Doubtlessly none of these supposed wine lists are accurate.  I would hazard a guess that they might be as off as 20% or more.  But, then, what fun would it be if you didn’t get rooked every now and then?

My recommendation based on the below three choices was Amanda’s, though I don’t think any of the lists are sublime.  One is crap, one is pretty good, though not great, and one is a California expense account list.  Take a look at the three and see what your thoughts are.  I recommended Amanda’s, by the way.  But, is one crap and one a California sucker list?

Amanda’s Restaurant

Trinity

3Forty Grill

Serious wine lovers in the San Francisco Bay area get several opportunities each year to indulge their passions for wine. Large, themed tastings like the ZAP Zinfandel Festival or the recent Pinot Days are great opportunities to get a sense of a certain varietal and the quality of the recent vintage in California and events like the upcoming Family Winemakers are an opportunity to taste wines from smaller producers. It is quite rare, however, despite the nearness of the appellation and the saturation of wine in the Bay Area, for consumers to get the opportunity to get an in-depth or comprehensive look at the wines of Napa Valley. Perhaps it's just because Napa wines don't need much marketing help, or perhaps it's because the Napa Valley Vintners association exhausts itself with its two major events each year, but there just isn't a real good opportunity for members of the public to survey the breadth and depth of wines from the Napa valley. Unless, that is, you happen to be a member of the Napa Valley Wine Library Association. The Wine Library is just what it sounds like: a library with books about wine. Started in the early Sixties by a group of winery owners that realized the irony of having a public library in the heart of Napa Valley that possessed virtually no literature or resources about wine, the library association was built on donations of money and books from Napa's wine families over four decades. Now occupying a special section of the St. Helena public library and even owning a small vineyard out behind the building, the Wine Library Association is a membership organization that gives its members access to these materials, some of which are rare and historic, as well as to annual tasting events. Each year the organization hosts a two part event: On Saturday they offer a full day seminar on a specific topic, often a certain AVA or certain varietal, and then on Sunday they offer a tasting event showcasing a specific varietal as represented by hundreds of wineries in the valley. This year's event will feature an all-day seminar on August 23rd at the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena focused on "White Winemaking -- Techniques and Trends", in which prominent winemakers and vineyard managers from Charles Krug, Robert Mondavi, Spencer Roloson, Stony Hill, and Louis. M Martini discuss the current state of white wine making in Napa Valley. On Sunday the 24th, over 100 wineries will pour their recent vintages of white wines in the grove at the Silverado Country Club. Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Marsanne, Vermentino, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Grigio, Roussanne, Albariño, Viognier and more will be on offer. "That's all well and good," you may be saying, "but this is a members-only event and I'm not a member of the Napa Valley Wine Library Association." That's true. But a check for $60 sent in advance, or a check for $85 on the day of the tasting will do the trick. Membership is available on the spot, and covers the tasting plus any others that you choose to go to for the rest of the year. If you'd like to attend the seminar on the 23rd, there is an additional cost of $150. Sound like a steal? It is. Unless you're a member of the trade that attends Premiere Napa Valley, or someone willing to pay in the hundreds or even thousands for a package at the annual Auction Napa Valley, there is generally no other way to get the opportunity to taste so many Napa Valley wineries in a single setting. If you're serious about learning more about Napa wines, especially if you're interested in some of the less famous wines of the valley, this is an event you don't want to miss. I've provided an initial list of the wineries scheduled to pour at the bottom of this post organized by the varietal they'll be showcasing. Napa Valley Wine Library Association Member Tasting Sunday August 24th Silverado Resort and Country Club 1600 Atlas Peak Road Napa, California 94558 707-257-0200 Annual membership dues for the Association are $60, or $85 if purchased at the door. Only checks and cash will be accepted, I believe, so stop at an ATM or bring your checkbook. Additional details on how to get membership in advance and on the event can be found on the Association's web site. Please note that the location for the Saturday event is the Greystone Castle in St. Helena My usual tips for such outdoor public tastings apply: wear loose fitting but dark colored clothing (but keep in mind that it may be very warm for the outdoor tasting). Eat a good meal before going and drink lots of water while tasting. Decide in advance which wineries you would like to visit, and make sure to spit rather than swallow the wine to make sure you get a chance to enjoy (and remember) a number of wines. The wineries and the varietals currently scheduled to pour are as follows: Albariño Mahoney Chardonnay El Molino Fleury Estate Forman Grgich Hills Hendry Hyde de Villaine (HdV) Jocelyn Lonen Keenan Kongsgaard Long Vineyards Mayacamas Monticello Muir's Legacy Northfield O'Brien Patz & Hall PEJU Pine Ridge Pride Prix Richard Partridge Rombauer Rutherford Ranch Saddleback St. Clement Saintsbury Sedna Stags' Leap Winery Stony Hill Swanson The Hess Collection The Terraces Trefethen Truchard Tulocay ZD Chenin Blanc Ballentine Casa Nuestra Gewürtztraminer Madonna Estate Stony Hill Marsanne Krupp Brothers Moscato Canelli Robert Pecota Muscato Azul La Sirena Pinot Blanc Saddleback Pinot Grigio Madonna Estate Pinot Gris Hendry Riesling Casa Nuestra Prix Stony Hill Trefethen Rousanne Prix Truchard Sauvignon Blanc Broman Cakebread Carrefour Crocker & Starr Duckhorn Ehlers Estate Emmolo Frog's Leap Green and Red Hall Heitz Hill Family Honig Jericho Canyon Joseph Phelps Long Meadow Ranch Markham PEJU Rios Rutherford Grove Rutherford Ranch St. Supery Silverado Vineyards Spring Mountain Teaderman Vinoce Vermentino Mahoney Viognier Saddleback Seps Spencer Roloson Stags' Leap Winery Proprietary Blends Ceja, Vino de Casa Hill Family, Carly's Cuvée Krupp Brothers, Black Bart's Bride Prix Robert Mondavi, Fumé Blanc Robert Sinskey, Abraxas St. Supéry, Vertú Schramsberg, Blanc de Blancs Venge, Bianco Spettro

Next week I will be tasting some wines and posting my notes on Twitter. I’ve done this for a while now but this is the first time I’d like you to join me live.

And I really mean live as I’ll have five bottles of Hugel wine with me in Healdsburg next week and, if you are close, I’ll have a glass ready for you. If not, then join me on my new Ustream channel.

The tasting has been organized by Bin Ends Wine, who have provided the samples and arranged for my interview with Etienne Hugel. Etienne will be joining me on Twitter from Alsace for the tasting on August 21st at 7pm EST/4pm PST.

For those in Northern California, I will be at the Michel-Schlumberger Estate with the Hugel wines and invite all readers and listeners to join me to taste these wines live. We’ll start with the Hugel Gentil 2006 at 4pm local time and conclude with the Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 2001 sometime before 6pm. After the tasting, let’s get some dinner in town.

Who’s joining me?

Post a comment here if you are joining me in person.

Disclosure: My company works with Michel-Schlumberger currently but we are tasting another producers wines there.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Winecast 75 - Etienne Hugel
• Twitter Taste Live with Hugel

If I ever wanted to make a lot of money in the wine industry, I know just what I'd do. It wouldn't be starting a vineyard, or publishing a book, or making my own wine, or marketing someone else's. No if I wanted to make a pile of money, I'd simply organize a big wine competition. Such competitions and their gold medals are good for one thing and one thing only: making a pile of money for the people who organize them. I don't believe the do a bit of good for the wine industry as a whole, no matter how excited all those gold-medal-winning wineries are. Now I'm a die-hard capitalist at heart. The folks that run these wine competitions are doing their best to get along in the world just like everyone else. I've got nothing against them personally. But I see the endless parade (more and more are started every year) of wine competitions as no better than those talent scouting scams you see in the paper, where overly hopeful parents of young actresses and models-to-be get sucked into paying "talent fees" for the chance to have their offspring "considered" for representation by a talent agent that may not even exist, let alone have the connections needed to turn someone into a star. In other words: one big racket. Here's an excerpt from one such competition's literature:

"NEW Competition! Look at the Super Star Pro Wine Buyers Lined Up to Judge Your Greatest Wines! Get your wines tasted by top U.S. Professional Wine Buyers from Andronico's Market, Dean and Deluca, IL Forniao Restaurant Group, Playboy Mansion West. $75 per entry Early Bird until August 16. SO DON'T WAIT. Enter Now. Moving wine and finding new retail outlets is getting harder and harder... Why spend thousands of dollars traveling and hours beating your head against the wall trying to get face time with the real decision makers? We've done the work for you to get your wines in front of the right people. What does this mean for you? Well, in addition to cutting down on your work and expense, the results will be published and distributed TO THE TRADE.... Winners will be awarded gold, silver and bronze -- and the Guide will provide price points, contact information and production information so that wine buyers throughout the U.S. (and abroad) can use it as their "bible" to find wines they KNOW the wine-buying public will love."

I don't know about you, but that sort of makes my skin crawl. I don't see this as much different than marketing investment schemes to the elderly. The two prey on the same insecurities about success among those who desperately want to be successful. They're not illegal, but they are morally dubious. A huge number of wineries in the United States don't get the 90+ point scores from the critics that immediately bring their wines to the attention of the wine buying public. Nor are they sufficiently popular that people buy their wines no matter what the critics say. This group of wineries needs to sell their wines. They need wine buyers at restaurants, hotels, retailers, and bars to think that their products are worth selling. They're not desperate -- any more desperate than the maker of a product who needs to sell it to survive -- but they do know that they have not gotten accolades from the people who really count, so selling out their wine is going to take a combination of hard work and luck. Where there is a need in the marketplace, products and services spontaneously arise to fill it. Recognizing the need for hundreds, if not thousands of wineries to distinguish themselves from the pack somehow, the commercial wine competition arose. The formula is simple. Wineries looking for publicity pay a fee for each wine that they want to enter into the competition. Their wines are judged in dozens and dozens of different categories (generally by hardworking folks who are trying to do a good job, though not always) to maximize the numbers of medals that can be handed out like so much candy to the nervous wineries looking for as much validation as those anxious parents who want their children to be stars. Maybe after paying the $750 to enter ten bottles of wine, a winery walks away with a Gold, two Silvers, and one Bronze medal. They get to hang them around the necks of their bottles in the tasting room. They get to pay their PR lackeys to send out press releases about the awards, and, of course, they now get to mention the fact that their wine won a gold every single time they pour a glass for anyone, anywhere. Of course, there's nothing wrong with this, despite its insipidity. There's nothing really wrong with the folks who organize these wine competitions making hundreds of thousands of dollars from the event ($500 x 800 wineries = take it to the bank). But there is something vaguely evil about the whole scenario. It's like a whole little economy that has sprung up to feed on insecurity, mediocrity, and hope. And with so many wine competitions out there, from state fairs to so-and-so's international wine competition, the thousands of gold medals handed out have become completely meaningless. I've never had a friend recommend a wine to me based on the fact that it has won a gold medal. I've never had a sommelier in a restaurant or bar tell me that the wine they were recommending was a gold medal winning wine. I've certainly never seen it listed on a wine list. I think I might have seen (but only once or twice) a wine store or supermarket shelf talker mention a medal. The only people I ever hear talking about these damn medals from are the wineries themselves and their marketing agencies, both of whom (rather pitifully I think) try to wring every tiny little bit of mileage out of their award that they can. It's like the folks who work in tasting rooms don't have anything interesting to say about the wines, but if they can talk about medals they might just sell a bottle or two. I'm sure someone will come along here and slap me down and tell me that gold medal wines sell better in their tasting room and that they really have gotten a return on their investment of however many hundreds of dollars they spent on this wine competition or that state fair entry. But that doesn't mean that the wine industry wouldn't be a hell of a lot better off if all these wine competitions just went away, and people spent their money and time making better wine, and telling people interesting stories about it. Which is what most everyone remembers anyway.

Who knows where this stuff comes from? Or why the first place I find out about it is some newspaper in the UK. But apparently times are tough for some grape growers in Washington state, so instead of putting the hard work in to grow wine grapes, they're turning to Marijuana instead. Or perhaps more accurately, they're selling out to friendly people who show up willing to pay cash for their vineyards. Apparently several former vineyards have been converted to Ganja fields in the last year or two. But one has to wonder at the wisdom of such an approach given that due to their need for sun, most vineyards are quite exposed and easy to spot from the air. As in, easy to spot from a DEA helicopter. Or maybe these folks are getting really savvy and they're just shooting for a sensimilla cover crop in between the rows. The stuff grows pretty quickly, maybe they're getting a full, um, harvest by the time the rows need to be cleared in the spring. I'm reminded of a great song by Little Feat... "Just give me: weed, white sand, and wine, and I'll be willin'" Read the full story.

The Pinot Days event, which took place on the last weekend in June this year, brings together one of the largest collections of Pinot Noir producers in North America for the tasting pleasure of the public. It's taken me quite some time to get this report out. Such tasting reports are the most time intensive blogging that I do, especially when the organizers of events like Pinot Days don't have an electronic list of the wines that are being poured at the event. Which means I need to transcribe the hundreds of wines and scores that I record in my notebook at the event. And that is tough to do with a newborn in the house. But this weekend I finally got a block of time to spend with my scores and crank them out. I use such events, comprehensive as they are, as a means of judging the overall quality of the vintage in California, if it is possible to generalize in such a way as this. At this most recent tasting, the 2006 Pinot Noirs were on display, and I found them generally good but not as consistent as those who made good wine in 2005 (a problematic vintage in certain places). 2006 seems to have been more consistent in quality across many regions, from Santa Barbara County all the way up to Mendocino than in 2005. However the character of the wines did not seem as strong as in recent past vintages. In particular I found myself encountering a moderate incidence of volatile acidity in the wines, which seemed more prevalent in Sonoma Coast and Russian River Valley wines than in wines from the Central Coast areas. The field of wine also evidences a continued dialing back of extraction and ripeness from levels that seemed to peak in the 2002 and 2003 vintages. This is especially true for the wines from the Santa Lucia Highlands which tend to be some of the most overripe Pinot Noirs made in Northern California. Wines from Garys' Vineyard, Pisoni Vineyard, and Rosella's Vineyard, continue to be moderated to saner levels of fruit and alcohol than in the past. I'm especially excited about the 2006 wines from the Santa Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley, which seem to be excellent and certainly worth pursuing in greater depth. I know that some of you have been waiting for this report for some time (and probably given up on ever getting it), but better late than never. I've called out the few nice roses I found as well as a couple white wines of note. Also, given the increasingly steep price of most Pinot, I've called out those wines that I think represent the best values (under $35). Enjoy. Click on the wine names to find online retailers who sell that wine. PINKS AND WHITES 2007 Patton Valley Vineyard Rose of Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $14. 2007 Hartford Family Winery Rose of Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. Score: between 9 and 9.5. $22. 2006 Fort Ross Vineyard Rose of Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. Score: around 9. Cost: $16. Where to buy? 2007 Coterie Rose of Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. Score: around 9. Cost: $?? 2007 Inman Family Wines Pinot Gris, Russian River Valley. Score: around 9. Cost: $ 25 2007 Novy "Blanc de Noir" White Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $?? BEST VALUES 2005 Ladd Cellars Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $30. 2004 Fort Ross Vineyard Pinotage, Sonoma Coast. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $32. 2006 Patton Valley Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $35. 2006 Joseph Swan "Saralees Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $35. 2006 Mary Elke Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. Score: around 9. Cost: $26 2006 W.H. Smith Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. Score: around 9. Cost: $28 2006 Joseph Swan "Cuvee de Trois" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. Score: around 9. Cost: $28 2006 Copain "Tous Ensemble" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. Score: around 9. Cost: $30 2006 Fort Ross Vineyard "Symposium" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. Score: around 9. Cost: $32 2006 Eno Wines "Never Say Never" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. Score: around 9. Cost: $32 2006 Melville Pinot Noir, Santa Rita Hills. Score: around 9. Cost: $32 2006 Eric Kent "Windsor Oaks" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. Score: around 9. Cost: $33 2006 Byron Kosuge "The Shop" Pinot Noir, Carneros. Score: around 9. Cost: $33 2006 Londer Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. Score: around 9. Cost: $35

Complete List of Scores

WINES WITH A SCORE AROUND 9.5 2006 Elke Vineyards Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $38 2006 Derbes Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $45 2004 Derbes "Les Pinots" Pinot Noir / Pinot Meunier, Russian River Valley. $44 2005 Calera "Ryan Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Mt. Harlan. $40 2002 Calera "Mills Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Mt. Harlan. $48 2006 Peay Vineyards "Pomarium" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $52 WINES SCORING BETWEEN 9 AND 9.5 2006 Freeman "Akiko's Cuvee" Pint Noir, Russian River Valley. $52 2006 Fort Ross Vineyard "Estate" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $39 2005 Fort Ross Vineyard "Reserve" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $49 2004 Fort Ross Vineyard Pinotage, Sonoma Coast. $32 2006 Eric Kent "Stiling Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $42 2001 Elke Vineyards Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $55 2005 Elke Vineyards Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $45 2006 Demetria Estate "Le Belier" Pinot Noir, Santa Rita Hills. $45 1999 Clos Saron Pinot Noir, North Yuba. $N/A 2005 Calera "Mills Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Mt. Harlan. $45 1997 Calera "Reed Vineyard" Pinot Noir (out of magnum), Mt. Harlan. $75 2007 Auteur "Ophelia" Pinot Noir (blend of Oregon and California fruit). $38 2006 Auteur "Shea Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon. $70 2006 Arista "Longbow" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $48 2006 Ancien "Mink Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Napa. $45 2006 Patton Valley Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon. $35 2006 Peay Vineyards "Scallop Shelf" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $52 2005 Pelerin "Rosella's Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $48 2006 Saintsbury "Lee Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Carneros. $45 2006 Hartford Family Winery "Fog Dance" Pinot Noir, Green Valley. $$45 1998 Domaine Naddef "Les Champeaux" Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru, Burgundy, Fance. $?? 2006 W.H. Smith "Marimar" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $48 2006 W.H. Smith "Maritime" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $54 2006 Pappapietro Perry "Pommard Clone" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $49 2006 Pappapietro Perry "Peter's Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $49 2004 Michaud Pinot Noir, Chalone. $38 2002 Michaud Pinot Noir, Chalone. $N/A 2006 Melville "Terraces" Pinot Noir, Santa Rita Hills. $52 2006 Melville "Carries" Pinot Noir, Santa Rita Hills. $52 2006 Londer "Canby Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $50 2006 Londer "Paraboll" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $30 2005 Ladd Cellars Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $30 2006 Ladd Cellars "Gaps Crown" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $?? 2006 Kindred "Amber Ridge" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $$44 2006 Joseph Swan "Saralees Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $35 2006 J. Wilkes "Block Q" Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara County. $55 2005 J. Wilkes "Block Q" Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara County. $55 WINES WITH A SCORE AROUND 9 2006 Goldeneye Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $55 2006 Freeman "Keefer Ranch" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $46 2006 Freeman Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $42 2006 Foursight "Charles Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $46 2006 Fort Ross Vineyard "Symposium" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $32 2006 Flying Goat Cellars "Rio Vista Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $40 2006 Eno Wines "Never Say Never" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $32 2006 Eric Kent "Windsor Oaks" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $33 2006 Mary Elke Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $26 2006 Demetria Estate Pinot Noir, Santa Rita Hills. $40 2006 Demetria Estate "Cuvee Sandra" Pinot Noir, Santa Rita Hills. $60 2006 Copain "Kaiser En Bas" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $50 2006 Copain "Tous Ensemble" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $30 2006 Copain "Cerise" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $45 2006 Clos Saron "Home Vineyard" Pinot Noir, North Yuba. $45 1994 Clos Saron Pinot Noir, North Yuba. $N/A 2003 Hereszytn Clos Village Vielles Vignes, Gevrey Chambertin, Burgundy, France. $37 2006 Byron Kosuge "The Shop" Pinot Noir, Carneros. $33 2006 Byron Kosuge "Hirsch Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $50 2006 Byron Kosuge "Manchester Ridge" Pinot Noir, Mendocino. $40 2007 Auteur "Sonoma Stage" Pinot Noir, Sonoma. $60 2006 August West "Graham Family Vineyard" Russian River Valley. $48 2006 Arista Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $40 2006 Arista "Mononi Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $56 2006 Ancien "Toyon Farm Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Carneros . $45 2006 Pey-Lucia "Frisquet" Pinoe Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $39 2006 Saintsbury "Stanley Ranch" Pinot Noir, Carneros. $45 2006 Saintsbury "Brown Ranch" Pinot Noir, Carneros. $65 2006 Siduri "Ewald Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $?? 2006 Hartford Family Winery "Lands Edge" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $45 2005 Skewis "Reserve" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $50 2006 W.H. Smith Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $28 2005 Huber "Baden" Pinot Noir, Malterdinger, Germany. $42 2006 Pappapietro Perry "Laura's Family Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $49 2006 Miner Family Vineyards "Garys' Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $55 2006 Miner Family Vineyards "Rosella's Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands . $55 2003 Michaud Pinot Noir, Chalone. $38 2001 Michaud Pinot Noir, Chalone. $N/A 2006 Melville Pinot Noir, Santa Rita Hills. $32 2006 Londer Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $35 2006 Londer "Estate" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $50 2006 Joseph Swan "Cuvee de Trois" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $28 2005 Joseph Swan "Trenton Estate" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $52 2005 Joseph Swan "Great Oak" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $38 2006 Inman Family Wines "OGV" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $45 WINES SCORING BETWEEN 8.5 AND 9 2006 Handley Cellars Pinot Noir, Mendocino. $25 2005 Handley Cellars "RSM Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $52 2006 Goldeneye "Migration" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $32 2007 Gary Farrel "Bien Nacido Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley. $50 2008 Gary Farrel "Hallberg Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $50 2006 Freeman Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $42 2006 Flying Goat Cellars "Dierberg Vineyard" Pinot Noir Santa Maria Valley. $42 2005 Eno Wines "Fairview Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $38 2006 Elke Vineyards Rose of Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $18 1998 Elke Vineyards Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $$60 NV Mary Elke "Booneville Bath" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $18 2007 Caloir "Romas Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $44 2007 Caloir "Monument Tree" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $44 2005 Tardy "Au Bas de Combe" Nuits St. George, Burgundy, France. $54 2006 Calera "Mt. Harlan Cuvee" Pinot Noir, Mt. Harlan. $30 2006 Bouchaine "Estate" Pinot Noir, Carneros. $39 2006 August West "Rosella's Vineyard" Santa Lucia Highlands. $48 2006 Arista "Toboni Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $56 2006 Ancien Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $?? 2006 Pelerin "St. Vincent" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $38 2005 Philo Ridge Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $32 2005 Copeland Creek Pinot Noir, Sonoma. $25 2006 Roesseler Cellars "Dutton Ranch" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $38 2006 Roesseler Cellars "Sanford and Benedict" Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara. $48 2006 Saintsbury Pinot Noir, Carneros. $35 2006 Saintsbury "Toyon Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Carneros. $45 2006 Saintsbury "Cerise Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $45 2006 Siduri "Muirfield" Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon. $?? 2006 Siduri Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $?? 2006 Siduri "Sonatera" Vineyard Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $?? 2005 Skewis "Legenfelder Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $44 2001 Skewis "Floodgate Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $N/A 2006 Suacci "Carcienne" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $48 2005 Tandem "Sangiacomo Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $48 2005 Tandem "Van Der Kamp Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Mountain. $48 2006 Halleck "The Farm" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $50 2005 Huia Pinot Noir, Marlborough, New Zealand. $30 2006 Tantara "Bien Nacido - Old Vine" Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara County. $48 2006 Tantara "Dierberg Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley. $52 2006 Tantara "Pisoni Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $60 2006 Ladd Cellars "Moore Ranch" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $35 2006 Ladd Cellars "Swicegood" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $?? 2006 J. Wilkes "Hillside Bien Nacido Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara County. $42 WINES WITH A SCORE AROUND 8.5 2006 Handley Cellars Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley. $30 2006 George "Vintage IV" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $50 2006 Gary Farrel Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $42 2006 Flying Goat Cellars "Rancho Santa Rosa" Pinot Noir, Santa Rita Hills. $44 2006 Enkidu "Gina Marie" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $42 2006 Enkidu Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $28 2006 Dovetail Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $39 2006 Dovetail "Indioli Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $52 2006 Clos Saron "Texas Hill" Pinot Noir, North Yuba. $40 2005 Domaine Prince de Menode "Ladoix" Burgundy, France. $31 2005 Serveau "Les Sorbets" Morey St. Denis 1er Cru, Burgundy, France. $73 2006 Bouchaine Pinot Noir, Carneros. $24 2006 Roesseler Cellars "Red Label" Pinot Noir, California. $28 2006 Roesseler Cellars "Griffin's" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast. $35 2006 Roesseler Cellars "La Encantada" Pinot Noir. $46 2006 Tandem "Auction Block" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Mountain. $60 2006 Tandem "Silver Pines" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Mountain. $60 2006 Tantara "Garys' Vineyard" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands. $52 2006 Native 9 Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara County. $55 2006 Inman Family Wines "Meredith" Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley. $45 2005 Sonnet "Kruse Vineyard" Pinot Noir, York Mountain. $40

I don’t know if this wine from Brett Favre is going to the bargain basement or the collectible rack.  Methinks Brett needs a bottle or two after the last month, however.

Brett Favre Wine.

It's no surprise that with the Olympics going on, all manner of news media have turned their eye on China. The wine media have taken this opportunity to explore and explicate the rapidly growing interest in wine that seems to have arisen in China in the last few years. Much of this coverage is quite superficial, but increasingly journalists are actually exploring China's wines, wine regions, and wine culture. Two recent articles are worth reading for their thoughtful commentary on China's burgeoning wine culture. The first, from the ever articulate Mike Steinberger at Slate, draws on his experience living in Hong Kong for several years and paints a nuanced view of just what the obsession with wine among China's nouveau riche may mean for the world. The second article, which appeared in the online version of Men's Vogue, explores the efforts to produce local wines in China. My own experiences corroborate the findings of of this article. Namely that most of the supposed top wines produced in China have a long way to go. However, it's only a matter of time before someone cracks the code (or simply spends enough effort and money) to produce excellent wine there. Both articles are highly recommended reading for anyone who is interested in the future of the global wine industry. Like in so many aspects of the global economy, China's effect on the wine industry will be huge.

Fog in the Distance "The vineyard landscape is often as much about the sky as it is the rows of vines. The fog rolling through the vineyard makes it an entirely different place." -- Michael Regnier INSTRUCTIONS: Download this image by right-clicking (Mac users, click and hold) on the image and selecting "save link as" or "save target as" and then select the desired location on your computer to save the image. Mac users can also just click the image and drag it to your desktop. To set the image as your desktop wallpaper, Mac users should follow these instructions, while PC users should follow these. PRINTS: If you are interested in owning an archive quality print of this image, or any of the other vineyard images featured here on Vinography, you can purchase one on the Michael Regnier Photography web site for $85. ABOUT VINOGRAPHY IMAGES: Vinography regularly features images by photographer Michael Regnier for readers' personal use as desktop backgrounds or screen savers. We hope you enjoy them. Please respect the copyright on these images.

We now have a profile on Facebook. See our mutual friends, check the latest Dover Canyon twitter, get updates on current activities at Cellar Rats, and send us a wine toast or virtual garden plant. I have also posted "TooDooz" project deadlines for the two books I am currently working on. You can ask questions about my books-in-progress or just check up on me to see if I am meeting my self-imposed writing deadlines.

I don’t pretend to understand why the movie Baby Mama, which opened on April 28th, is still playing on screens in Indianapolis while the new wine movie Bottle Shock, that opened yesterday, isn’t found on a movie screen anywhere in the state.

Nor do I understand why it was praised at Sundance, but failed to pick up distribution.  I do know that the movie trailer makes the movie looks as technically authentic to wine as Varsity Blues is to football.  Nonetheless, I’m all for a laugh and a popcorn movie.  Maybe it will create a rising tide in wine movies.  Heaven help us, we all know a rising tide raises all ships.  The stoner movie Pineapple Express should do boffo business and Cheech & Chong, perhaps not so coincidentally, are touring this fall.  Admittedly, I would buy tickets to Cheech and Chong to see “Basketball Jones” and “Sister Mary Elephant” live. 

Tonight I finally opened a wine sample I received earlier this year… a 3L box of California Chardonnay. I’m not much of a box wine guy because most I’ve had are really nothing to write about. At best, they are clean, simple wines sold at low prices. And this sample is not plowing that much new ground as it succeeds as a nice $6 wine… but I’m looking for a great $12 wine like the ones I normally drink on weekdays.

Has the time come for a $45 box wine?

Something on the order of an Eric Solomon, Terry Theise or Cameron Hughes selection would do well with wine lovers and I’m hoping to see something like this in the future. The big problem will be one of consumer perception which makes this category a problem sell at much over $25 a box.

So I hope that some enterprising distributor or importer will package their better wines in 1 liter TeraPacks. It’s better for the environment and saves fuel in shipping, a rising problem these days.

Who’s going to innovate here?

Those of you who have been hanging around these parts for some time know that on occasion I get together with my incredibly talented friend Chef David Kinch of Manresa Restaurant in Los Gatos, and we collaborate on a meal together. He cooks and I pick a bunch of wines that I think people might enjoy drinking while they eat what I maintain is the best cuisine in all of Northern California. It's been a while since we've done one of these dinners, but I'm pleased to announce a very unique event that we're simply calling The Sake Dinner. The idea is simple. I choose some of the best sakes in the world, and based on some discussion and tasting with me, Chef Kinch cooks an unbelievable meal designed to complement them. I've always loved the Japanese influence in David's cooking, and given that he recently spent some exploring Japan again, I can't wait to see what he comes up with for this feast. I'm also especially excited at the caliber of sakes that we're planning on pouring, which are going to be truly phenomenal. This dinner is not being marketed or advertised anywhere public except for the Manresa mailing list and here on Vinography. So you've got a shot at reservations if you want them. The nuts and bolts of the dinner: a special 8-course feast that will likely feature some heavenly raw fish in ways that only Chef Kinch can do it, coupled with 8 or more phenomenally good and interesting sakes from among my favorites in the entire world. Cost per person is $325, exclusive of tax and gratuity. Seating begins at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 10, and reservations are available by phone at 408.354.4330. As with every dinner I do at Manresa, I will be on hand to tell the stories of these sakes to those that are interested and make sure your glasses are full. Just eight weeks ago I presented a well received sake seminar at the Aspen Food and Wine Classic, so my sake jokes are all well polished (to the daiginjo level). Wait for it.... OK. I promise: no jokes at this dinner. Just serious sakes, and unbelievably good food. I hope to see you there. Manresa and Vinography present: The Sake Dinner Wednesday, September 10th, 2008 Seating begins at 6:30 PM Manresa Restaurant 320 Village Lane (just off North Santa Cruz Avenue) Los Gatos, CA 95030 408-354-4330 $325 per person gets you an eight course meal with sake pairings. You pay tax and gratuity. Reservations are required, and this event will most certainly sell out.

One gets the feeling that Robert Parker has been waiting the last five years to find the right opportunity to respond to his detractors.

In his own very subtle way, he has.  The September 2008 issue of Food & Wine magazine has an article by Parker called, 30 Years of Wine Trends that is required reading for all wine lovers.

Traversing 10 major occurrences in the wine industry over the last 30 years, Parker sanguinely opines on the following subjects:

• The Rise of the Winemaking Consultant
• The World’s Most Influential Wine Consultants
• The Rise of the Wine Critic
• The Culinary Revolution
• The Explosion of Diversity in Wine
• Exciting New Wine Regions
• The New Philosophy of Winemaking
• The Creation of Healthier Vineyards
• Wine Is Now Number One
• Huge Increases in Popularity and High Prices

In addition, some interesting things become known from his worldview:

On the rise of the winemaking consultant with a prefacing mention of Emile Peynaud:

Peynaud’s most influential successor was one of his students, Michel Rolland, who has had an equally profound effect on today’s global wine quality.  Rolland, based in Pomerol, is currently the world’s leading consultant, and virtually every estate he has touched in his travels—from India, China and South America to California, Washington state and Europe, of course—has produced finer wine than it ever did before.

Parker continues,

A number of brilliant winemaking consultants have emerged from California as well.  The first, and still one of the greatest, is Helen Turley, who put cult wines on the map at wineries such as Pahlmeyer, Bryant Family Vineyard, Colgin and Blankiet.  Turley has also fostered other talented consultants, including Mark Aubert, Paul Hobbs, Bob Foley, Andy Erickson, Martha McClellan, Mark Herold, Heidi Barrett, Thomas Brown, and Phillippe Melka –- to name just a few.

It seems Parker is clearly disavowing any responsibility for two things – the cult wine craze and the typically “hedonistic” wine that go into those bottles.

On the rise of the Wine Critic

When I began visiting Bordeaux in 1979, only a handful of writers were there to taste the wines in the spring (and nearly all were British).  Today, more than 2,000 wine journalists from all over the world descend on this hallowed region each year.

Is the fact that his palate makes or breaks a vintage and the entire futures business too much of a responsibility for Parker?  Here, he blunts the notion by discussing how many journalists actually taste from barrel.

On The Explosion of Diversity in Wine

One of the biggest myths in wine today, constructed on half-truths, inaccurate observations and journalistic manipulations, is that the wine market has become so globalized that international companies are producing oceans of monochromatic wines from a limited number of grapes that all taste the same.  This radical and profoundly false point of view holds that individuality and artisanal winemaking have been replaced by oceans of vapid wines made with little taste or character.  This is appallingly untrue.  Moreover, there has been little serious discussion on the subject, and it cannot be backed by any specific evidence.

Hmm … this is where Parker veers into couched rhetoric.  Is it a red herring to say that Mondovino was talking about Yellowtail?  I think Parker is mixing storylines here.
On The New Philosophy of Winemaking

Here Parker discusses trends that have occurred that have led to stylistic advances in winemaking:

There have been major changes in winemaking, too, including cold soaks of the grapes pre-fermentation (to intensify the aromatic character of the wines)

…Other changes advocated by Emile Peynaud and his protégé Pascal Ribereau-Gayon –progenitors of the so-called soft approach to winemaking—called for aging in the bottle, not the barrel, resulting in wines that are less tired, with brighter flavors and more vibrant fruit.

… Producers have moved away from industrial-style fining and filtration, resulting in wines with more intense flavors, textures, aromatics and character.

There are other aspects of the wine world that Parker touches on, but these are the highlights in terms of Parker completely eschewing any influence in the wine world that we see today.  It’s a pretty neat trick to bakchand all of your detractors delicately in the space of 3000 words, but he has managed to do it.  I’m not sure I agree with it all, I’ve been following the wine world closely for 10 years and, while I’m well familiar with Emile Peynaud, I’ve never heard his name with such emphasis as the forbearer of so many of today’s trends.  Likewise, his brush-off of Bordeaux tastings emphasizing that he is one of 2000 is complete B.S.  There may be 2000 journalists there, but only three or four matter.

However, admittedly, within context of the vitriol that Parker frequently takes, I do have to respect and admire his almost complete absolution of ego in any of the events of the last 30 years.  It takes a big person to take the high road; perhaps Parker still carries enough of the Ralph Nader ethos that set him down the path of wine in the first place. 

Check out the article here.

There are those of you who believe that one of my favorite things to do here on Vinography consists of bashing the French government. Believe me, I wish I had no cause to do that whatsoever, but they just keep inviting it. Today, however, I'm happy to prove that I'm an equal opportunity mudslinger, as I pronounce the latest proposals on alcohol regulation by the Scottish government to be profoundly and malignantly ridiculous. The UK, it seems, has a problem with binge drinking, or so the government claims, and with the best intentions, has set out to do something about it. Unfortunately, like the best bureaucracies run by those completely out of touch with reality, they have stumbled from one idiotic idea to another. The first plan of attack was to make all the glassware smaller, because bigger glasses presumably produce the unavoidable delusion that you're not drinking very much and therefore you won't admit just how drunk you really are. Not content to leave it at that, the Scottish government has proposed a set of sweeping reforms to the drinks industry the likes of which haven't been seen in the English speaking world since Chicago in the 1920's. The proposals on the table include raising the minimum age for getting a drink to 21 years old; restricting the purchasing of liquor to only certain checkout aisles in stores; requiring a minimum price per fluid unit of alcohol; and in a move right out of the French playbook, restricting the advertising of wine and spirits. Soon, you'll be able to vote and serve in the armed forces in Scotland, but you might not be able to buy a pint for another three years after that. At least, that;s the brilliant idea being proposed by some nincompoop in Edinburgh. If the dark side of the force is strong in Scotland, the light side seems to be triumphing in Italy, which finally agreed to allow its wine producers to package their wines however the hell they want to without losing their DOCG designations. Which is to say that soon you'll be able to get Italian wine in a box. While you might not jump for joy at this prospect your own personal wine-loving self, if you're concerned with Italy continuing to compete on the world market, this has got to make you pretty happy. I know I'm pleased as punch. There's a huge market for boxed wine in Europe (think: Tesco supermarkets in Nottingham) and it's a great thing for Italian producers to be able to tap into that demand without being forced to declassify, and therefore devalue their products. Bravo, Italia.