The 12th Day arrives…2009 Esprit de Beaucastel Panoplie & Duck

December 24, 2018

Assorted cheeses with the 2009 Tablas Creek Panoplie

The 12th Day of Wine demanded digging in the cellar for something special and Michael perused the Tablas Creek Wines that we patiently wait to open, allowing them to age as we gaze longingly at the Vintage chart waiting for them to be in their prime.

It’s worth noting that as we gazed at the Vintage Chart, we opted to open the 2009 even though it is listed as “Drinking Well: Youthful”. The 2010 that we have is in a closed phase. We probably could wait another 5 years to open this bottle and have it in a “Drinking Well: Mature” stage, but…life is short.

Tablas Creek 2009 Espirit de Beaucastel Panoplie

Tablas Creek Vineyard 2009 Esprit de Beaucastel Panoplie

What makes the Panoplie different from the other Esprits? Well this is the most age worthy wine they make.

“sourced from the most age worthy lots in the cellar and blended for intensity and balance.”
Tablas Creek (from the bottle!)

This is why this wine that is almost 10 years old, is still drinking “Youthful”.

This vintage had the Panoplie blend at 65% Mourvèdre, 26% Grenache and 9% Syrah.

Tablas Creek Vineyard Winery in Paso Robles Adelaida AVA

Monica from Tablas Creek was kind enough to send me a link to a post Jason Haas had done a few years ago “We Warm-up for the Holidays with a Vertical Tasting of Panoplie, 2000-2015”

This was written in December of 2016 (so 2 years ago). In it Jason describes how the 2009 Panoplie was showing then.

2009 Panoplie (65% Mourvedre, 26% Grenache, 9% Syrah): A very cool, savory, and exciting nose of dark blue/black fruit, seemingly less about Grenache than the 2008. The fruit is fresh but concentrated, cherry and plum, with a powdered sugar character to the tannins that we often see in great vintages. Some cocoa powder on the finish, which is still youthfully grippy and fairly primary. It’s still quite a young wine, from a powerful vintage, and may also still be emerging from its closed phase. Should make great drinking over the next decade.
Jason Haas from the Tablas Creek Blog December 2016

What to pair?

We looked at options for pairings, and while Neil Collin’s recipe for Boeuf Provençale looked wonderful, I am beef stewed out this holiday season. So…we opted to go for something celebratory, like duck! And for an extra bit of celebration, (and to be sure I didn’t mess up cooking the precious duck), we chose to pick up some superbly made duck dishes from Cured & Whey and eatt here in Las Vegas.

Cured and Whey – Duck Reuben

I have been meaning to try this great sandwich from Cured & Whey and managed to be on this end of town today to stop by and pick one up. Rocksan was kind enough to have them prepare it for me uncooked, so I could grill it at home for Michael and I for dinner. What’s in it you ask? Hudson Valley Duck Ham, Swiss Cheese, Sauerkraut, Dijon and house sauce.

Cured & Whey Gourmet Market and sandwich shop storefront

Cured and Whey is a great little gourmet/sandwich shop created by Chef Michael Stamm. They are in a warehouse area, but don’t be afraid, they are well worth searching out. They get busy at lunch time, because they are so good. So plan ahead and leave enough time to order and sit with your eyes closed soaking in each and every bite.

6265 S Valley View Blvd Ste K Las Vegas, NV 89118 | 702-429-3617

eatt – Duck with sunchoke three ways & black currant sauce

The Tablas 2009 Panoplie with Slow Cooked Duck Breast and sunchokes 3 ways

eatt is a neighborhood restaurant in Vegas that is serving amazing Michelin Star worthy food. The duck is “Slow cooked and seared served with
sunchoke three ways and a black currant sauce” The chef was kind enough to prepare it for me slightly deconstructed, so that I could warm the sunchokes and duck later for Michael and I to enjoy. The 3 ways for the sunchoke were confit, puree and chips. Sadly my plating is probably no where near as beautiful as it would have been had I enjoyed it at the restaurant.

You can find them at:

7865 W Sahara Avenue Suite 104-105
Las Vegas, NV 89117 702-608-5233

Funny Coincidence. When I told Rocksan that I was picking up her duck sandwich and then heading to eatt for their duck dish, she asked if I was basing this on Michael’s article in the RJ on duck dishes. Nope! I had missed that, but you know what they say about “great minds”! (Looks like there are a few more places I need to hit up!)

Article in the RJ on Duck Dishes around the Valley

The Pairing

Ah duck…so adorable, but so delicious. The wine took a bit to open up. I suggest decanting an hour before (which I did not do, so we waited for it to open in the glass.)

Assorted cheeses with the 2009 Tablas Creek Panoplie
Slow Cooked Dusk Breast with confit sunchokes, sunchoke puree and sunchoke chips from eatt
Duck Rueben from Cured and Whey with the 2009 Tablas Creek Panoplie

The pairing was divine. The duck breast melted in your mouth and the sunchokes were the perfect companion adding a bit of brightness to the rich and beautiful duck. The currants set the dish off with that sweet/tart/acid component and made the pairing with the wine even better.

We moved on to the duck rueben…mmmmm…great flavor without being too overpowering. I had worried about the sauerkraut with this, but it was perfect. And I have to do a shout out on the tiny pickle medley that accompanied the salad. Mini gherkins, and tiny grape size and smaller tomatoes along with some heritage tomato slices in the lightest of pickling that were perfection (where can I get more of those Rocksan?)

A surprising pairing with goat cheese

Honeyed goat cheese with cherry preserves and rosemary

One last surprising pairing. We still had some goat cheese around from other pairings and I had thrown together a cheese plate. The goat cheese with cherry preserves and a bit of rosemary was really nice with this wine, as did the Haymarket Goat Cheese I had picked up at Cured & Whey.

Want some?

This particular wine is sold out on their site. The idea with these wines, is to get them when they are released and then sit on them while they get tastier and tastier. So…go find a bottle on their website https://tablascreek.com/story/vineyard_and_winemaking/our_wines

You really should go visit

Mourvedre ripening at Tablas Creek in the Adelaida AVA of Paso Robles
Vineyards at Tablas Creek
The Grounds at Tablas Creek

Make your way to Paso Robles. There is wine in abundance. Take the time to make the drive out to Tablas Creek. I really believe that these are some of the finest wines being made in this country. And…you can learn all about all of the Rhône varieties here

Tablas Creek Vineyard
9339 Adelaida Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446
Phone: 805.237.1231

More Info…

We have tons of information on our site about Tablas Creek. They really are an inspirational winery. There is a whole page of information, posts and a great series of interviews that we did with Jason Haas the GM for you to check out!

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On the 11th Day – A Ballard Canyon Syrah from Larner & Beef Stew

December 23, 2018

Larner Reserve Syrah with Beef stew and Polenta

We’ve come to the 11th Day in our 12 Days of Wine and we pulled a beautiful bottle of Ballard Canyon Syrah out from Larner Vineyard & Winery.

2013 Larner Estate Syrah – Reserve

Larner Ballard Canyon Syrah — Larner 2013 Ballard Canyon Syrah Reserve

Our finest Syrah from the 2013 vintage has a vivid bouquet of violets, cassis, blueberries, pepper, vanilla and espresso. The intense, full palate has a layered texture of chalky tannins followed by a smooth finish. Fermented with 20% whole cluster, 4% Viognier and aged 36 months in 30% new French oak barrels.
Larnerwine.com

So this is a big Syrah. This is not just their Estate Syrah, but a bottling of the best of the lots of the Estate Syrah from 2013.

Ballard Canyon AVA

The view down @ballardcanyon from above @saarloosandsons Windmill Ranch Vineyard. #sbcwines

This AVA is in the Santa Barbara Region and is nested inside the Santa Ynez Valley AVA. At about the half way point of the East West Valley of Santa Barbara, the climate is perfect for Rhône Varieties and Syrah thrives here.

You can visit the AVA site and read about the climate and varieties here.

Larner Vineyard

We have been lucky enough to spend significant time with Michael Larner soaking up his amazing knowledge of the area and the soils. You can find all sorts of articles and interviews on our Larner Winery & Vineyard page.

Larner Winery
Syrah Grapes on vines, Larner Vineyard, Ballard canyon
Larner Fête 2016, Larner Vineyard
Autostrada cookin’ up wood fired pizza at the Larner Fete
The Barn at Larner Vineyard set for the Larner Fete
Larner Vineyard Syrah
Michael Larner speaking on Syrah.
The General Store on the Larner Property
Larner Vineyard Sunset

What to Pair?

I reached out to Larner Vineyards and Jeni who runs the Tasting Room and Wine Club responded with a great pairing for winter. A Beef Stew made with the Syrah to pair with the Syrah!

Hi there Robin! Here is a recipe that we definitely recommend to go withour Reserve Syrah! Nice and hearty and pairs perfectly with the wonderfully balanced 2013 Syrah!
Jeni Torres Larner Wine Club Manager and Tasting Room Lead

Here is the beautiful recipe she shared with us.

Beef stew with mushrooms and polenta

3 pounds stewing beef, cut into 2-inch cubes
4 thick bacon slices, cut into 1-inch –wide strip. (I used unsalted bacon)
4 cups of beef broth
4 cups of 2011 Larner Syrah.
25 pearl onions
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
20 ounces of mushrooms, you can used brown button mushrooms, quartered, shitake cut in half,
cremini mushroom or if possible fresh porcini mushroom. I soaked the dry porcini mushrooms in the warm water and added this water to the stew.
1 medium onion, chopped
3 tablespoon of all-purpose flour
2 tablespoon on tomato paste
1 bunch of baby carrots, cut
2 bay leaves
3 springs of thyme
Salt. If you use the salted bacon don’t add salt,you can always do it at the table.
Some olive oil
3 cups of polenta

In the heavy pot cook bacon, until the bacon turns light brown and crisp. Remove the bacon from the pot and drain on paper towels. Keep the fat.

Dry the meat in the paper towel and cook it in the bacon fat until brown. Put the meat aside in the bowl. Add 1 cup of beef stock to the pot,increase the temperature and try to scrape all the brown bits from the bottom. Pour this liquid over the meat in the bowl.

Add 4 tablespoons of the olive oil to the clean pot and add chopped onion. Cook until golden.

Add garlic and cook until soft. Add all the mushrooms and cook until soften, about 2 minutes

Add 3 tablespoon of flower and cook for1 more minute stirring. Pour 2 cups of beef broth to the mixture, stir and add to the meat.

Return the beef and all the juices that have accumulated to the pot. Add 4 cups of red wine. I used Larner Syrah 2011.

Add 2 tablespoon of the tomato paste, herbs and bring the meat to the boil. Simmer for about 1 hour or until the meat is soft.

Boil some water in the pot, add small onions and cook for 10 minutes. Peel the onion. Clean the carrots and cook them until soft.

When the meat is ready add the bacon, onions and carrots to the pot. Remove the herbs.

If your beef stew is too thick add more beef broth.

In the medium pot bring 9 cups of water to the boil. Add polenta in the thin stream stirring all the time until polenta starts to separate from the side of the pot. Your polenta should be very soft and runny. You can also follow the instruction on the box.

Pour the polenta on the plates and cover it with beef stew. You can also sprinkle it with some chopped parsley. (Optional)

This was a delicious meal and was beautiful with the Syrah. As you can see I did not add the parsley, but I did add a pat of butter on top of the polenta before ladeling on the stew.

Want some?

Well I don’t know if there is any of the 2013 left but you can find their beautiful Syrahs as well as other Rhône style wines in single varieties as well as their Elemental Blend on their site.

They also have a tasting room in Los Olivos, next to the Los Olivos General Store where you can taste their wines.

Los Olivos General Store
The Larner Tasting Room in Los Olivos
The patio in front of the Los Olivos General Store and the Larner Wine Tasting room

Larner Vineyard & Winery Tasting Room

2900 Grand Avenue
Los Olivos, CA 93441
T | (805) 688-8148

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On the 10th Doon of Wine…short ribs and Syrah from Bonny Doon

December 22, 2018

Randall Grahm is one of the hardest working guys in wine and he has always been an “of the people for the people” kinda guy. I remember meeting him for the first time at a conference dinner 5 or so years ago. A fan of his blog, I was a little star struck, but he was genuine and just a nice guy. He was kind enough to do a phone interview with me on his Picpoul Blanc a while back which was included in a piece on Picpoul from California and France.

We visited the Bonny Doon tasting room a couple years ago and were sucked in by the humor, the down to earth (well except for the spaceship) nature of the place and the interesting, quirky, yet completely approachable wines he was making.

Le Cigare Volant at the Bonny Doon Tasting Room
A “Carboy” or demijohn on the counter at Bonny Doon Vineyards. This is used for élevage (the progression of a wine between fermentation and bottling)
A Proper Claret – Bonny Doon
Bonny Doon beach

Bonny Doon 2017 Syrah from Lieff Vineyard in San Luis Obispo County

This wine comes from Lieff Vineyard in San Luis Obispo County.

If you haven’t visited SLO Wine Country, it is worth a trip. We did an interview with Heather Muran, Executive Director of San Luis Obispo Vintners and Growers Association a few years back and need to return to the area ourselves!
The Lieff Vineyard is in the southern part of San Luis Obispo Country. Lweieff spent years making wine in the Napa Valley, before starting to make wines from this estate, which is really, further south than any of the other vineyards. The vineyard lies east of Santa Maria. They make their own wines (with Mikael Sigouin of Kaena at the helm) and then are growers for many winemakers, including Randall of Bonny Doon.

Soils here are iron rich, the growing season is long, with warm clear days and cool nights with a marine layer that rolls in. Want more details…

The Wine

Randall describes this wine as unusual. It’s not an “in your face” Syrah in my opinion. He likens the body to “a proper Burgundy”.

A rather unusual Syrah, and definitely not one for those who imagine that Syrah’s best work is doon as a macho, blockbuster, dense-packed vinous analogue to 10-40 motor oil. This wine is all about elegance and finesse and is a study in rotundone—the peppery/bacon-fatty molecule that is the essence of Syrah, and is optimally expressed in cooler vintages and the coolest sites. This wine has the body of a proper Burgundy, lovely, fresh acidity, light to medium weight and just exudes white, black and pink pepper.
Bonny Doon Tasting Notes for the 2017 Syrah “Lieff Vineyard on the Bonny Doon site

What to pair

Of all the winemakers that I contacted to ask for pairing suggestions with wines for our 12 Days of Wine, Randall was the quickest to respond. He is always ready to talk about his wines and share information. When I asked for a suggestion for a pairing with the Syrah, he quickly got back to me with a suggestion of Birria de Res (goat) with dried chilis and offered to send me the recipe, which he did shortly thereafter. Lucky for me, you can use beef short ribs with the recipe also (I was worried about finding goat!).

Birria de Res

This recipe comes from Nopalito: A Mexican Kitchen by Gonzalo Guzmán. It was served at the Day of the Doon 2017 and Randall says it was a standout for their staff.

INGREDIENTS and DIRECTIONS:
Adobo:
200 grams ancho chiles
8 garlic cloves
1 1/2 tbsp dry thyme
1 1/2 tbsp dry oregano
1 tbsp whole black pepper
7 bay leaves
2 tsp cooking cloves
3 tbsp white sesame seed
1 whole dry cumin
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/2 tbsp ginger powder
1 cup dark beer (such as Negra Modelo)

Cover the chiles with boiling water for 20 minutes. Toast the rest of the dry ingredients at 350 for about 15
minutes or until sesame seeds turn brown, but not black. Using a blender, combine all the ingredients and
blend; it should be a smooth thick paste (if more liquid is needed to blend, use the soaking liquid from the
chiles).

Birria:
8 lbs short ribs (about 6 large pieces)
1/2 onion
6 garlic cloves
3 bay leaves
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
Salt
Water to cover meat

Season short ribs heavily with salt all around and let it sit for 30 minutes. In a large sauté pan seared the meat
on all sides until golden brown. Using half of the adobo marinate the meat and let it rest for at least 4 hours or
overnight. Lay down some banana leaf (if unavailable, can sub cabbage leaves, corn husks or parchment paper)
on a braising pan followed by the meat. Cut the onions into quarters and spread over the meat with the rest of
the ingredients, cover with water about and inch above the meat, cover with more banana leaf and foil. Braise
for 3 hours at 325. When very tender, strain and place the liquid aside.

Salsa:
2 qts diced can tomatoes
35 grams toasted chile cascabel
3 garlic cloves
1/2 of the above adobo

On a medium sauté pan or griddle on medium heat toast the chiles; they should change to bright red and will
have some hard spots. On a roasting pan add all the other ingredients except for the adobo and roast for 30
minutes at 350 then add the adobo and blend until really smooth.

To finish: In a medium pot combine the salsa and remaining liquid from braising, bring it to a boil and simmer
for 30 minutes, it should be rich but still runny consistency. Cut the birria into serving portions and it to the
mix, taste for salt. Best served with some warm tortillas, fresh cilantro, pickled red
onion (or simply diced red onions), and a hot sauce if you decide it’s not too spicy.
Nopalito: A Mexican Kitchen by Gonzalo Guzmán. via Bonny Doon Vineyards

Our Variation

I’ll admit that I’ve never done short ribs, so when the butcher asked “Bone in or Boneless” I ended up with half bone in and half boneless. Michael hates the bones, but…after further discussion with the butcher and seeing the final product, I found out that bones short ribs are a whole different cut of meat and don’t have the fat and marbling that ribs do.

A few other details that I adjusted. We had some lovely dried chili’s that my friend Giacomo had given me, and I was unable to find Anchos…I also didn’t find whole cumin, so powder will have to do (I expect we might lose a bit of roastiness in flavor sadly).

Michael took over from here, and stuck closely to the adobo recipe with the exception of using a little less ginger powder. It sat over night with the ribs soaking up the flavor.

I popped it in the oven the following day to cook for 3 hours and prepared the salsa while it cooked. I took some liberties. Michael and I don’t do spicy so much these days and I could not locate the chile cascabel, so we did without that. We used stewed tomatoes rather than diced, which I drained before roasting with the garlic. Our adobo was a little thinner than a paste and we didn’t want things to be too soupy.

Dride and baked Herbs
Boiling the peppers
Short Ribs
Blending
Marinating

I added the braising liquid to the roasted tomatoes and cooked it down for 30 minutes. I skipped adding the additional adobo, as we tasted it and found it a little too spicy for us. So I drained the mixture a little before blending it. For me it was perfect. It came out like a really authentic mexican salsa, you know the really good ones that you only find at a mexican restaurant. It was roasty and had just the right spice for us. If you like spice, stick to the recipe! I am sure that it is delicious and packs more of a punch than our version.

We served this with flour tortillas, as well as a southwest cabbage slaw, sour cream, guac and the salsa, which we served on the side. Michael preferred the boneless cuts of meat, I preferred the bone in (we really are Jack Sprat and his wife).

A late lesson on Birria

I had a Spanish friend who was wondering about “birria” (she had a much different connotation of the word). I googled it and found lovely photos of a goat or mutton stew from the Mexican State of Jalisco. (So perhaps I should have left some of that liquid in. I guess, it could have been soupier! LOL.) Perhaps we will find ourselves in San Francisco and make a stop at Nopalito and if it is on the menu, taste the dish the way it was meant to be. Regardless, our variation on this dish was delicious, and I encourage you to try the recipe and find your own variation.

The Pairing

The Birria de Res was delicious. And the wine…well we both really raved about this wine. It was the perfect compliment, it was beautiful with the food.

I got exotic spices and black fruit on the nose. You could tell this was a cool climate Syrah. The mouth feel was lighter than those giant Syrahs you often find. This wine was flavorful, without being BIG. It was food friendly, but it wasn’t a pushover with the food. Balance…that was what this wine had in spades.

The entire pairing was comfortably delicious. Thanks Randall for this pairing suggestion which made for a really memorable meal.

Want some?

Visit the site to order the 2017 Syrah “Lieff Vineyard”

It runs an extraordinarily reasonable $26 per bottle.

Want to visit them?

Flowers on the edge in Davenport
The Coast Line North of Davenport on Highway 1
Bonny Doon Tasting Room In Davenport CA

You really should get yourself to their tasting room in Davenport. Located at 450 Highway 1, Davenport, CA 95017. They are typically open 11 to 5. Plan to visit the beautiful coast that is right out their front door and perhaps take a drive into Bonny Doon, the tiny town that inspired the name that sits up in the hills just inland from Davenport. Make sure to allow plenty of time to taste through the ecclectic line up that is Rhône driven, by the original Rhône Ranger himself.

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Day 9 of the 12 Days of Wine with Beckham Estate AD “Creta” Pinot Noir & bacon wrapped dates

December 21, 2018

Chehalem Mountains AVA from Beckham Vineyards

Andrew Beckham has merged his two loves, ceramics and wine. The bottle for this wine lists it as “Creta A.D. Beckham MMXVI Amphora Pinot Noir”. This wine was made in a terra cotta vessel. A vessel made right here in his studio on the vineyard.

There is a long story to go with this. A beautiful and very real story, patiently told to me by Andrew’s wife Annedria, when we visited them at the Beckham Estate Vineyard this summer. That story will have to wait for another day. Soon, I promise. Today, we are going to talk about this wine.

A.D. Beckham 2016 “Creta” Amphora Pinot Noir

Ad Beckham 2016 Amphora Pinot Noir — A.D. Beckham 2016 “Creta” Amphora Pinot Noir

“Creta” is latin for clay and this wine was fermented and aged in terra cotta and bottled un-fined, un-filtered.
From Beckham Estate Vineyard http://beckhamestatevineyard.orderport.net/product-details/0076/2016-AD-Beckham-Creta-Pinot-Noir

Beckham Vineyard the view from the tasting room

The vineyard and winery sit in the Chehalem Mountain AVA on Parrett Mountain, where the vineyard elevation lands at 412 to 568 feet. Soils here are Jory and Saum. This wine, of which there were only 100 cases made, is unfined and unfiltered, and if you want to get all geeky, the Pinot clones are Pommard, Wädenswil, and Dijon 115 and 777. This is 30% whole cluster.

Beckham Vineyard, The view West from Parrett Mountain

What to pair?

Annedria Beckham got back to me with a beautiful recipe that she had just paired with the Creta Amphora Pinot Noir.

Hello Robin,
As we just had our 3 pigs butchered we have a wealth of pork in our freezer. I made this recipe the other evening and it went beautifully with the AD Beckham Creta Pinot noir’s bright cherry and cranberry notes. You could substitute duck breast for the pork for an equally delicious meal.

Spiced Pork Tenderloin with Cherry-Thyme Pan Sauce
modified from Epicurious
INGREDIENTS
·         1 teaspoon ground coriander
·         Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper
·         2 pork tenderloins (about 2 pounds total)
·         2 tablespoons olive oil
·         1 large shallot, thinly sliced 1/4 cup
·         10 sprigs thyme
·         1 1/4 cups dry red wine
·         1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
·         1 tablespoon sugar
·         1 (10-ounce) package frozen dark sweet cherries, thawed, halved (about 2 cups)
·         1-2 tablespoon cold unsalted butter
PREPARATION
1.       Combine coriander, 1 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper in a small bowl. Rub pork with spice mixture.
2.       Heat oil in a 12″ heavy skillet over medium-high until hot but not smoking. Reduce heat to medium and cook pork, turning occasionally, until meat is browned on all sides and an instant-read thermometer inserted diagonally into the center of each tenderloin registers 145°F, 20–25 minutes. Transfer pork with tongs to a cutting board (do not wipe out skillet) and let stand 10 minutes.
3.       Meanwhile, cook shallot and thyme in skillet, stirring, until softened and lightly golden, about 2 minutes. Add wine, vinegar, and sugar. Bring to simmer and cook, scraping up any browned bits and stirring frequently, until liquid is reduced by about half and shallots are tender, about 4 minutes. Stir in cherries, any accumulated juices, and 3/4 tsp. salt and cook 1 minute. Remove from heat, add butter, and swirl skillet to combine. Pluck out thyme sprigs, taste, then season with salt and pepper as needed. Slice pork and serve with sauce.
Cheers!
Annedria Beckham of Beckham Estate Vineyard

This recipe had my mouth watering. Sadly, this was a late night pairing and the recipe arrived too late for us to gather all the ingredients. I look forward to them releasing the 2017 Creta Pinot, so I can get a bottle and try it with this amazing recipe. The cherries, the balsamic, the thyme, the pork…all would be perfect with this wine. And actually, Annedria’s suggestion of duck, is really what I may try! But for tonight, we will have to do without.

Michael made do with gourmet sliders and bacon wrapped dates waiting to pair with this wine. Michael wrapped the dates in a maple bacon, so we had that sweet and savory combo and found that it went brilliantly with the wine. With the sliders, I have to admit, I slathered one bun with lobster pate and the other with tomato marmalade, the sweet, the savory, the rich…all played perfectly against this wine

The Wine

So what does it mean to the wine to have the wine fermented and aged in clay rather than wood?

Maybe it was just my brain making the association, but I felt like I could smell the clay on this wine. On the nose, it starts with baking spices and deep red fruit (that is the cherry and cranberry Annedria mentioned). It is medium bodied, but flavorful, so it feels bigger in your mouth. The tannins are smooth, but lively and long lasting. As it opened up I got more mocha/cocoa on the nose, and it felt darker in my mouth and more savory. Later as I tasted I got wilted rose petals and a little salinity. Going back to the clay, the nose always hit me as very fine particles (like clay and cocoa powder), which gave the wine a smoothness that I found really appealing.

I was really enchanted by this wine.

Need some?

I will apologize for taunting you with this beautiful wine. This vintage is sold out. But…new vintages lay ahead ( I think they are bottling the 2017 Estate Pinot Noirs currently) and you can purchase their wines from their site.

Want to Visit?

The entrance to Beckham Vineyards from SW Heater Road

They are typically open Fridays and Saturdays from 11-5. They are closed from December 17th, 2018 -February 1st, 2019 except by appointment. (So schedule an appointment or plan your trip after Feb 1st)

To schedule an appointment email them at [email protected]

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On the 8th day…a Cabernet..well a Cabernet Franc…a Blanc de Franc at that.

December 20, 2018

Leah Jørgensen Cellars, Blanc de Cabernet Franc

Day 8 of our 12 Days of Wine found us doing a late night pairing. We met Leah Jørgensen of Leah Jørgensen Cellars this summer and had a wonderful conversation with her about her wines and so many other things. You can find all that info here.

One of the unique wines that she makes is a Blanc de Cabernet Franc. She had run into one of these in the Loire Valley and decided to make one from Oregon.

What to pair?

We searched and found a recommendation thanks to Opening a Bottle https://openingabottle.com/blanc-de-cabernet-franc/

Tasting notes: A most unusual white wine that first comes across as quirky, but then mellows into a truly distinctive beauty. Offers aromas of lemon, rosemary,beeswax and gradually gives way to deeper fruit aromas as it is exposed to air— ripe nectarine, blood orange and honey. There is even a note that recalls lilacs. Ultra-smooth texture and medium body, with some minerality on the finish. A wine with a lot of grace. Drink young.
Recommended for: Summer sipping on the back patio. With food, I’d aim for roasted chicken or cedar-planked salmon.
Opening a bottle – What is Blanc de Cabernet Franc Like? May 11, 2016

While it wasn’t summer, we wanted to enjoy this bottle young.

I had to work, but when I returned at almost midnight, Michael had a feast set with a cedar-planked salmon in maple and spices, rosemary bread with goat cheese, and a fruit and cheese plate complete with two goat cheeses, one honeyed, the other herbed, gouda, grapes, prosciutto, blood orange slices and some of that lovely gooey haymarket goat cheese.

Leah Jørgensen Cellars, Blanc de Cabernet Franc, with Cedar planked Salmon

The wine

This wine is really fascinating. You put your nose in the glass and you get tart citrus and pith. It was blood orangey, but after tasting my blood oranges, it was a little more tart, drifting toward pink grapefruit. And then you get peppers, green, but not bell. It really is that a roasted pickled poblano pepper. On the back there was a bit of salinity, and there is that touch of tannins.

This is a wine that starts like a white and ends like a red with a lingering finish.

The pairings

Maybe it’s just channeling the Loire Valley traditions, but I found that this wine went spectacularly with all the goat cheeses most especially the honeyed goat cheese. With the gouda? Not so much. With the salmon it was great, holding it’s own against the heavy spices on the salmon, the wood, with the maple helping to round and soften each bite.

Want some?

You can find her wines available on her squarespace site

And this beautiful bottle will set you back only $30.

Or check out her page with her distributors to find a place near you.

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On the 6th day there was Joyful Noise

December 18, 2018

On the 6th day of Wine we opened our bottle of Joyful Noise Pinot Noir made by Deven Morganstern.

2015 Joyful Noise Pinot Noir

We met Deven and Callie of Joyful Noise at the Uncommon Wine Festival this summer and spoke with them about the 2015 Pinot Noir. The grapes for this wine come from Lazy River Vineyard in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA of the Willamette Valley in Oregon.

Deven’s pairing suggestions

I reached out to Deven to ask about a pairing for the holiday season and he was kind enough to respond with a pairing that makes things simple so that you can relax and enjoy the time at the holiday with family and friends.

Here is what I thought of when planning out our Christmas Dinner menu….my favorite part is all the excitement and build up to dinner which starts a few days before Christmas so we can best enjoy the crazy!

Deven Morganstern, Executive Noise Maker and Grape Wrangeler at Joyful Noise

Joyful noise quote — The back of the bottle of Joyful Noise says it all

In our house, Christmas Dinner is really an all day affair. Everyone wakes up, we make coffee, have pastries from the shop down the street and do the present thing. That all gets us to about lunch time when friends and other family start to stop by. Either just for a minute or coming early for Dinner you’ve got to have some snacks ready in advance or you will never get out of the kitchen. So, a couple days ahead I’ll bake loaves of Ken Forkish’s Saturday White Bread recipe from Flour Water Salt Yeast, pick up a ton of charcuterie from Chop and Olympia Provisions here in Portland, some pickled and fresh veggies, and then make this tuna spread (see below) with Jacobson canned tuna in oil. All can be whipped up days ahead of time, other than grilling some of that bread, and you can keep those hungry folks at bay while wrapping up the main show in the kitchen. Perfect thing about the 2015 Lazy River Vineyard Joyful Noise Pinot Noir is it can roll with all these snacks and transition straight into dinner time with roasted Duck, Prime Rib, or at our house this year, Smoked Ham. With enough color and structure that your Cabernet drinking Uncle will be cool with it and all the acid and fruit anyone that loves Oregon Pinot Noir will be filling their glass a second time, you can pop open a couple bottles and let the day fill with the noise of friends and family.
Deven Morganstern, Executive Noise Maker and Grape Wrangeler at Joyful Noise

I didn’t have time to order tuna from Jacobson. But I will be sure to pick some up when I am back on the Oregon Coast. (We will be heading to a wedding just up the road from there next year). While I am familiar with Jacobson salts (and have been happily gifted a few), the tuna is new to me and I can’t wait!

I headed to the market and picked up a higher quality tuna than I typically do for sandwiches for this recipe.

The Tuna Mousse recipe

It’s an actual recipe, from Patricia Wells’ Trattoria.

Lemon and Oregano Tuna Mousse

One 6 1/2 ounce can best quality tuna packed in olive oil. Do not drain (the Jacobson tuna was 7 1/2 ounces, but no big deal)
4 T unsalted butter, at room temp
Grated zest of 1 lemon
2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 T olive oil
1/2 t dried oregano
1 plump fresh garlic clove, finely chopped

Put it all in a food processor and process till smooth and creamy. Taste for seasoning. I usually add salt and pepper.
It’s best served at room temp and will keep for about 3 days.

We also put together a cheese plate to graze on. filled with a wide variety of cheeses, charcuterie etc.

Joyful Noise 2015 Pinot Noir with Cheese Plate

The Pairings

I will pull this quote again from Deven

“With enough color and structure that your Cabernet drinking Uncle will be cool with it and all the acid and fruit anyone that loves Oregon Pinot Noir will be filling their glass a second time, you can pop open a couple bottles and let the day fill with the noise of friends and family. “

Nothing could be more true. I think of this as a relatively “big” Pinot. Full of flavor. It went beautifully with everything! Not a single bad pairing. I was a little skeptical of the tuna spread pairing. I read the recipe, thought it sounded tasty and was charmed by Deven’s story. But quite honestly I did not think this would be a spectacular pairing. Boy was I wrong. The acid in the wine was brilliant pairing with the lemon in the spread and then contrasting with the fat and and richness. This was an enlightening pairing for me.

Want some?

Do you want a bottle? They have a page on their site to tell you “How it Works” They are small, and this was the only wine they made annually, until this year when they added a Pet Nat to their line up (I can’t wait to try that!)

And go check out our interview that we did with them at Deven Morganstern is making a Joyful Noise

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Day 5 Müller Thurgau from Montinore Estate and crab and celery root crostini

December 17, 2018

It’s the fifth day of wine here at CGC this holiday season, and today we are enjoying a wine from the Northwest Willamette Valley, in the proposed Tualatin Hills AVA from Montinore Estate.

We have been doing a bit of posting lately about our trip to Montinore Estate and our visit with Rudy Marchesi. You can learn a bit about the estate with our posts

Montinore Estate a Recent History

Montinore Estate the Deeper History

Montinore Estate – About the Wines

At the end of our visit, we picked a few bottles to have shipped to us, including their 2015 Müller Thurgau. I mean how often is it that you come across a Müller Thurgau?

Montinore Estate 2014 Müller Thurgau

Montinore Estate Muller Thurgan 2014 — Montinore Estate Müller Thurgan 2014

As we planned our 12 days of Wine, this was one of the bottles I pulled out to taste. I sent a quick email to Kristin Montinore the President of Montinore Estate and she was kind enough to reply with a favorite pairing for this wine.

I love serving the Muller Thurgau with appetizers. One of my favorite pairings is a Dungeness Crab and celery root salad. Its both bright and creamy and can be served on it’s own or with a crostini.
Kristin Marchesi, President Montinore Estate

The recipe!

She was kind enough to share this recipe with me, and I pay it forward (it’s really delicious) by sharing it with you!

Celery Root and Dungeness crab crostini
2 tbl mayonnaise
1.5 tbl lemon juice
2 tsp whole grain mustard
1 small celery root, grated
1 bunch celery leaves, chopped
2 tbl minced scallions
½ lb cooked Dungeness crab lump meat
salt and pepper to taste

Whisk mayonnaise, lemon juice, whole grain mustard in a small bowl. In a larger bowl mix together remaining ingredients. Stir in dressing. Add Salt and pepper to taste and serve either with crostini, endive leaves or crackers.
Recipe kindly shared by Kristin Marchesi

Sadly I was unable to find Dungeness crab this time of year in Vegas, but we found some other crab that filled in. The crostini were delicious were quick to make.

Montinore 2014 Muller Thurgau with Crab Cakes

The tasting and pairing

As we poured the wine, fine bubbles lined the glass. Müller Thurgau is a Swiss hybrid grape created by Hermann Müller. It is a cross of Riesling and Madeleine Royale. You can definitely taste it’s riesling heritage in the glass.

It contrasted beautifully with the savory buttery sourdough crostini and the bright celery root and celery leaves and the richness of the crab, it’s fruit and slight sweetness rounding out the palate. This wine sits at just 11% alcohol so feel free to finish the bottle with a friend!

If you find yourself in the Willamette Valley, take the beautiful drive up to Forest Grove in the Northwest portion of the Valley to visit Montinore Estate.

Montinore Estate

3663 SW Dilley Road Forest Grove, OR 97116

503.359.5012
[email protected]

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On the 3rd day we pair Riesling with a Tamales!

December 15, 2018

As we arrive at the 3rd of our 12 days of Wine, we are channeling a little decadence. When I spoke with Alex Neely about pairing the Libertine 2015 Dry Riesling here was his suggestion:

This holiday season pair the 2015 Riesling with pork tamales doused in your favorite hot sauce. The flowery aromatics and kiss of residual sugar in the wine provide the perfect compliment and balance to the dish. My wife’s family has been eating tamales every Christmas Eve as long as she can remember. Since we have been together it is a tradition we continue in our house and have even introduced to my Southern family, much to their delight.
Alex Neely, Owner/Winemaker Libertine Wines

I will admit to not being anywhere brave enough to try making my own tamales, and I knew that here in Vegas I would be able to find a place locally that had them, so I went on a search. What I found was a local Mexican family owned restaurant that has become a Vegas staple for Tamales. Doña Maria Tamales has been in Vegas since 1980. They make great tamales and have a fresh tortilla maker in front of the kitchen which is fascinating to watch.

I did a bit of research on how Tamales came to be a Christmas dish and found a great piece “Tamales: A Christmas Tradition”

The decadence tie in

Tamales a special event food, created typically in large quantities and meant to be shared with friends and family, I found this to be reflected in the Libertine label with Bacchus, the God associated with Festivals. The tie in continues when you realize Bacchus was also the god of agriculture and “Corn was a very important crop in Mesoamerica, with people believing that people were created from corn. Tamales, because they were wrapped in corn husks, became part of ritual offerings. ” (from Tamales: A Christmas Tradition)

2015 Libertine Dry Riesling

This wine comes from the LaVelle Vineyard in the Willamette Valley. 36 hours of skin contact and fermented outdoors for 5 months in neutral oak. Alex aged them sur lie for a year and a half. Unfiltered and unfined, it was lovely and decadent.

The Pairing

Normally you think of riesling and it’s bit of sweetness as calming spicy foods. Alex had suggested dousing the tamales in our favorite hot sauce. I’m a little “white bread” on this one. Michael doesn’t do “spicy” anymore, so we didn’t do the hot sauce, and we actually found that the wine intensified the spicy notes in the tamales.

The wine had petrol on the nose and green apple. It was tart and crisp on the palate and leaves your tongue a little buzzy! While it increased the spiciness of the dish, the wine itself became sweeter on my palate when I paired it with the food.

We met Alex at a festival this past summer and you can see our interview with him here.

It’s not easy to find his wines, but they are worth searching for. They are available mostly in Portland, but also in Beaverton and Hillsboro…all in Oregon. He has a page of supporters, so go visit them and taste his wines!

As always be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to keep up to date on all of our posts.

On the Second Day a Viognier

December 14, 2018

As we move to the 2nd day of our “12 days of Wine” we head to Washington to pair a Washington Viognier with one of our favorite traditional holiday foods, Thai take out! Yep…Carry out at the holidays always takes me back to “A Christmas Story”.

on the 2nd Day…

Maryhill Winery 2017 Viognier Columbia Valley

We were lucky enough to visit Maryhill back during harvest and get a behind the scenes look at their winery, as well as take in the spectacular views. This beautiful Viognier was sent to us as a sample for review following our visit.

This wine is 100% Viognier, has a touch of residual sugar and was partially fermented on oak staves. Here is a bit from the winery on the vintage:

“2017 was a warmer than average year and the growing season began slowly. Bud break occurred
a couple of weeks later than usual, especially when compared to the last few harvests. The late
bud break was due to the substantial cold weather that occurred in Washington State during the
winter of 2016. Temperatures then rose dramatically in late June through July. The extreme heat
caused vines to shut down, which further delayed harvest. Some grapes that are customarily
picked early were harvested significantly later than historical dates, although this varied
throughout the state. The upsides to the lengthened harvest were longer hang times and
agreeable flavor development in the red varietals that need more time to age on the vine. In
white varietals, acids were held which resulted in improved balance. Wines from this vintage
will age longer if red, and whites will have more pronounced zing.”

Cassie with Maryhill included a fun fact when she responded to me:

“Fun fact – Maryhill is the largest producer of Viognier in the northwest and best selling in the northwest, also the 2nd best-selling in the nation.”

The winery pulls from the Columbia Valley AVA and this wine is 35% Tudor Hills Vineyard, 26% Gunkel Vineyards (Estate), 23% Coyote Canyon Vineyard and 16% McKinley Springs Vineyard.

Viognier and Asian Takeout

Maryhill Viognier with Lemongrass & Lime Thai food.

In addition Cassie was kind enough to send some suggestions for food pairings:

“Suggested food pairings.. Spicy Asian food due to the natural sweetness in Viognier. Viognier also works in wine and food pairings with a wide variety of seafood and shellfish, roasted or grilled chicken, veal, pork, spicy flavors and Asian cuisine.”

As I said before, my brain went straight to Thai Takeout and there is a new place nearby I had been wanting to try. So…off we went to Lemongrass & Lime It was cloudy and rainy so soup seemed like a no brainer.

They had a pumpkin coconut milk soup on special so we picked that up, as well as some Tom Yum with Shrimp, Pad Thai with Shrimp, and Orange Peel Chicken. We went with spice level 3 (the waitress alerted me that 5 was pretty spicy and 10 well…)

The Viognier and the pairing

When you put your nose in the glass it is undeniably Viognier, with beeswax and honeysuckle. This had some warmth and spice from the oak staves. It is comfortable with a medium body and it went well with all the food.

I found I enjoyed it to balance the spice in the Tom Yum soup and the Pad Thai and that it really accentuated the flavor of the coconut milk in the soup.

Maryhill Winery Courtesy of Washington Wine Board

If you find yourself in Washington, Maryhill is worth looking up, they have spectacular views of the Columbia Gorge, a lovely tasting room and often live music on the weekends.

Goldendale
Tasting Room

9774 Hwy 14
Goldendale, WA 98620
Open Daily 10am – 6pm
Phone: +1 (509) 773-1976

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Un repas de Noël pour les fêtes de fin d’année (A Christmas Dinner for the end of the year celebrations)…with wine. #Winophiles

December 14, 2018

The wines of Vignobles & Signature for our French Style Season Dinner

When the French #Winophiles mentioned that they were going to make a “French-Style Season” the theme for our December discussion and tasting, I was all on board. I knew I wanted to pair these wines with authentic French holiday and winter foods, so…I went straight to my favorite Frenchman, Arnaud, to ask for suggestions. He had a tête à tête with one of his foodie friends in France and they put together a list for me of their favorite holiday and winter foods for gatherings. Thus began the planning for a party. These are foods and wines that are meant to be shared.

Well, the food part began there. The wines…ahhh…the wines were graciously sent from Vignobles & Signatures through Michèle Piron/Vinconnexion. 7 of their producers participated, and I received 3 wines.

I received the 3 wines as samples and I was not paid for this post. The opinions expressed here are all my own.

The Wines

Château de Tracy 2017 Pouilly-Fumé

Château de Tracy has been run by the same family since the 14th century. The Domaine is 33 hectares. Soils here are limestone and flint.

This 2017 Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire Valley comes from a vineyard overlooking the Loire. This was a tough year with spring frost that came after budbreak and limited the crop.

Quadratur Collioure Rouge 2015

This wine comes from Coume Del Mas in Banyuls/Collioure. This region is in Occitanies near the border with Spain.

Coume del Mas has only been around since 2001, when Philippe and Nathalie Gard created it. They have about 15 hectares of vines mostly on the very steep slopes near Banyuls sur Mer. Everything in the vineyard must be done by hand, you can’t get a tractor or even a horse up these steep slopes.

This wine is 50% Grenache Noir, 30% Mourvèdre and 20% Carignan. The soil is schist. Manually harvested, the berries get a cold soak and macerate for 3-5 weeks, then spend 12 months in barrel.

I was lucky enough to correspond with Andy Cook at Coume del Mas. I was looking for cheese pairings. He was a bit reserved on cheese with their red wines. They typically pair cheeses with their white wines. He suggested something creamy to smooth out the tannins. He also recommended that I decant the wine for two hours prior to serving (a tip that was used and I was rewarded!)

Château Haut Selve Red 2015

This is the 20th anniversary vintage of this wine. Yep, a new vineyard in Bordeaux. They are the only vineyard created in Bordeaux int he 20th Century. Château Haut Selve is located in the Graves appellation, they found a property that had been well known for grapes before the phylloxera epidemic. The land had been lying fallow for 120 years and was now overgrown with pine.

They took care clearing the trees and planting the vines. Owners Arnaud and Denis Lesgourgues brought in a talented crew to create a sustainable winery that has state of the art technology.

This wine is 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon. It spends 3 weeks in masceration and then is aged 12 months in French Oak, one third of it new.

A few other wines

Well…3 bottles was not going to do the entire party right? We needed bubbles to start the party. I referred to my Cremant post from last month and picked a few white, rather than rosé versions to start the night. Michael had really enjoyed the Levert Frères Cremant de Bourgogne so I picked up a couple bottles of that as well as of course a Cremant d’Alsace, from Lucien Albrecht.

Our friend Jill brought a bottle of Côtes de Bordeaux from Château La Grange Clinet that was 68% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc. This 2015 vintage was labeled Grande Reserve. It ferments in stainless steel and then ages in oak for 12 months. The vineyard is sustainable.

We also needed a wine for with dessert so we went with a wine from Sauternes from Chateau Doisy-Védrines.

The menu!

So Arnaud came up with a quick list for me of suggestions that included: Oysters, smoked salmon, foie gras, escargot, La dinde aux marrons, boudin blanc, boeuf bourguignon, pot au feu, tartiflette, raclette, mont d’Or chaud and Bûche de Noel. We narrowed down the list by time, wine pairing issues and product availability. We couldn’t find boudin blanc locally even after I had a friend with connections call around for me (Thanks Roxanne). So…here’s what we settled on.

The Cheese platter

Proscuitto, Haymarket Goat Cheese, filberts and cashews
Tomato marmalade
Lobster pate with cognac
Grapes, pecans, almonds, and goat cheeses, herbed and honeyed
Cornichons
Cherry preserves
Dijon mustard
Blackberries, comte and gouda

Gouda
Comte
Haymarket aged goat cheese
a honey goat cheese
an herbed goat cheese
smoked salmon
proscuitto
grapes
blackberries
assorted nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds, filberts)
Lobster pate with cognac
Dijon mustard
cherry preserves
tomato marmalade

I’ll admit, this was for grazing and sadly we didn’t end up pairing these with the wines, just munching with the Crémant. If we had…I would expect that all of the goat cheeses would have been exceptional with the Pouilly-Fumé and the blackberries, prosciutto, gouda and compte would have played nicely with the red wines.

Butternut Squash Soup

Okay, I know this was no where on Arnaud’s list, but we needed a soup to start us out! My french tie in for this is that I found the recipe on FrenchWomenDontGetFat.com

This soup went without the cream and was lovely with the Pouilly-Fumé.

Ratatouille

Yes, I know…this is typically a summer dish, but it really is lovely in the fall also as a vegetable side. It is so rich in flavor. So this was our vegetable dish and it was delicious.

Escargot

Yep, that was on Arnaud’s list and I found a can at Cured & Whey (thanks again Roxanne). I didn’t splurge for shells and I didn’t have it in my budget to buy multiple escargot pans, so I went with a South African Recipe I found which simply cooked the escargot in butter, garlic and lemon juice and then put them in a dish, covered them with mozzerella and stuck them under the broiler. Michael has discovered that he likes escargot!

If you want to find the recipe…snails in butter on Food24

Tartiflette

I made two versions of this extremely decadent potatoe dish! I had no idea what tartiflette was when Arnaud mentioned it. Now that I have made it, I don’t know how I lived without it!

I had a friend who is Jewish and does not eat animals (with the exception of Thanksgiving), so I wanted to make a tartiflette that she could enjoy also (no one should go without tartiflette). So I made one classic tartiflette and one with mushrooms rather than bacon. This was based on a BBC recipe for Tartiflette.

Bouef Bourguignon

This was a slow cooker recipe based on Julia Childs recipe. It was a bit of work, but it was well worth it.

Bûche de Noël

Okay, I was going to make a Bûche de Noël. I mean I had just watched the Great British Baking Show – Holidays! So I should be good to go! I chickened out and visited Patisserie Manon and ordered one (they have amazing desserts)

How the cooking went down

So the party was on Saturday, so I shopped on Wednesday, and started cooking on Thursday (thank goodness I’m on Vacation!).

It began with making the Butternut Squash soup on Thursday. It will sit in the fridge and the flavors will marry. This way it will be even happier when I reheat it in the crock pot the day of the party.

Friday I began the boeuf bourguignon and the ratatouille. After the initial prep the boeuf spent the day in the slow cooker and then went to the fridge to become even more flavorful. I did this before the addition of the mushrooms and wine.

The ratatouille, I was a little concerned about. What if it got soggy as it waited a day to be reheated? As this was a savory fall inspired ratatouille I decided it was okay. It smelled like heaven as it cooked.

Ingredients for Ratatouille
Ratatouille on the stove

Saturday I did the tartiflettes. Roxanne at Cured & Whey had just posted a recipe using the Le délice du Jura cheese which is a Reblochon style cheese from Jura. I put the two tartiflettes together (one bacon, one mushroom) and then stuck them in the fridge until I was ready to bake them. Then I prepped the escargot in the same way, ready to have the mozzerella topping added and sit under the broiler.

Ingredients for the Tartiflette
Le délice du Jura cheese for the Tartiflette
Tartiflette ready for the oven
Escargot

Before guests arrived I laid out the cheese plates. And when we were almost ready for soup, I popped the Tartiflette in the oven, followed by the escargot.

The Pairings

This was a feast, so we were drinking the wine, eating the food and enjoying the company. We did have a few aha moments:

One of my guests who typically avoids white wine, was smitten by the Château de Tracy Pouilly-Fumé. And we found it went nicely with the Butternut squash soup and the Ratatouille as expected.

I was enamoured by the Quadratur. I am terrible at decanting, I am always paniced that it will lose to much. This wine with the Rhone grapes that I love was huge, but opened beautifully as it decanted. It was my favorite of the night and I enjoyed it most with the boeuf bourguignon, although it was nice with the bacon tartiflette also.

My Bordeaux loving guest, stopped dead in his tracks when he tasted the Haut Selve. He spun and looked at me and said “That’s really good!”. Again this wine was really happy with the Bouef Bourguignon.

The Bûche de Noël, beautiful as it was got lost in the fray. I presented it to a group of people in deep conversation. But we did pour tiny glasses of the Sauternes and have a toast before everyone dug in to the cake as well as the macarons that Jill brought.

The Takeaway

This was a brilliant evening filled with great wine, food and conversation. Everything was delicious and a good time was had by all. That really seems to me exactly what a French Style Season should be.

And….it makes for outstanding leftovers which we enjoyed with the Crémant D’Alsace the next day!

Join Us to chat on Twitter

There were many other French #Winophiles taking part in this French Style Season. We will be gathering on Saturday December 15th, to discuss the wines and the foods on Twitter.We hope you’ll join– 8am PT, 11 am ET, and 5pm in France— and chat with us (I know 8 am is early Pacific time, but I’ll be up for it!) It’s easy to participate: just log in to Twitter at the times mentioned and follow #Winophiles. Feel free to chime in, making sure to append #Winophiles to your tweets so we can welcome you.

Here’s a preview of what each writer will contribute to the discussion – all articles will be live on Friday or Saturday, December 14 or 15th:

Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla whips up “A French #Winophiles Fête: Foie Gras, Pain d’Épices & Champagne Drappier”
Jill shares from L’OCCASION shares “How To Bring French Holiday Traditions Home”
Gwen at WinePredator has “Season’s Greetings French-Style”
Wendy at A Day In The Life On The Farm gives us “A Holiday Gathering with French Foods and Wines”
Martin at ENOFLYZ Wine Blog shares “A Taste of French Inspired Holiday Food and Wine”
Deanna from Asian Test Kitchen tells writes about “Ants Climb a Tree with French Wine”
Lauren at The Swirling Dervish tells us about “Parisian Holiday: A Few of My Favorite Things”
Michelle of Rockin Red Blog writes about “A French-Inspired Holiday Alsatian Style”
Kat from Bacchus Travel and Tours writes about “Noel en Provence“
Jeff from foodwineclick discusses “What is French-Style Season?”
Payal writes at Keep The Peas shares “Bonnes Fêtes à la #winophiles”
Lynn with Savor the Harvest shares how to “Give a Little Touche Française to Your Holiday #Winophiles“.
David Crowley from CookingChat shares “Festive Pairings for Pouilly-Fumé and Other Special French Wine #winophiles“
Lyn writes at L.M. Archer tells us about “The Hedonistic Taster: French-Style Season Edition”
Jane cooks things up at Always Ravenous shares “A French Inspired Winter Dinner”
Nicole from Somms Table shares “Crocus l’Atelier Malbec de Cahors with Château Mercuès Saffron Chicken Soup“
Liz from What’s In That Bottle tells us how to “Frenchify Your Festivities with Fun Wines“
Rupal from Journeys of a Syrah Queen shares “French Inspired Holiday Wines”

12 days of Wine

Here at Crushed Grape Chronicles we are counting down the days to Christmas with wine! Join us as we taste great wines and pair them with winemaker suggestions. Day One is here : On the First day of Christmas my true love gave to me a Gewürvignintocloniger!

Follow all 12 days on our 12 days of wine page

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On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me a Gerwürvignintocloniger!

December 13, 2018

fossil and Fawn, with potato chips and cheese

Okay, well he didn’t really give it to me, he pulled it out of the cellar (“cellar” being a fancy word for the wine rack downstairs).

When we thought about how to celebrate the holidays and to share them with you, the first thing that came to mind was Wine (of course). So we raided the cellar and pulled out 12 bottles to pair and enjoy in the run up to Christmas. Here is the first of our “12 days of Wine”.

Day 1 – Fossil and Fawn 2017 Oregon White Wine (aka Gewürvignintocloniger)

Gerwhat? Okay, so we tasted this wine at the “Uncommon Wine Festival”

The 2017 Oregon White Wine is a blend of 50% Riesling, 20% Savagnin Rose, 15% Gewürztraminer, 6% Fruilano, 6% Melon de Bourgogne, 3% Kerner (Yep, that’s a blend!). They fondly refer to it as the Gewürvignintocliniger.

Here is how Jim and Jenny of Fossil & Fawn described it then.

Jim So this is predominantly from one vineyard here where they have what I would call a bunch of kooky varieties, very uncommon white wine varieties, for example…
Jenny A very technical term…(Kooky)
Jim For example, in the Willamette Valley to my knowledge there are 14 plants of Kerner, which is a German grape and that makes up 3% of that wine. All 14 plants of Kerner are in there. And so there is a collection of unusual things, Also a collection of not so unusual things. 50% is Riesling which is fermented in an egg shape vessel. And the next is 20% Savagnin Rose, which is a relative to Gewürztraminer.
Jenny Which is also in there
Jim Which, Gewürztraminer is in there at 15%. It is 6% Fruilano, 6% Melon de Bourgogne and 3% Kerner, those 14 plants. So the Riesling as I mentioned is fermented in egg the other 50% was fermented on it’s skins for about 4 days and we pressed off and then it went into a mix of Acacia wood barrels and French oak barrels, totally unfiltered native yeast fermented, we use that yeast that exists naturally on the skins of the grapes to carry out the fermentation. We wanted to make something that was dry but rich and textural but aromatic, something kind of fun, food friendly.
From our July 2018 Interview with Jim and Jenny at the Uncommon Wine Festival at Vista Hills Vineyard.

Pairing a Gewürvignintocloniger

We reached out to Jim Fischer of Fossil and Fawn to ask about a perfect pairing for the holidays. Remember he described the wine as “something kind of fun, food friendly”? He also mentioned it as “summery” and well, it’s less than that right now. But in true Fossil and Fawn form he responded with a perfect pairing for the season!

“As far as pairings go, I’m a fan of elevated lowbrow food. Recently, we had the opportunity to include our gewurvignintocloninger with this incredible Wisconsin brick cheese (from Widmer’s Cheese Cellars) that our friend and cheesemonger Sarah stuck under a Raclette cheese melter. The cheese slowly dripped over a bed of Wavy Lay’s potato chips. The way the aromatic elements in the wine played off the rich, slightly funky cheese was delightful. Also, melting cheese on chips is incredibly fun and a great holiday party activity. We highly recommend it!”
Jim Fischer, II Vice President of Wine Things, Fossil & Fawn

I think my response to Jim was “Brilliant!” and it really is. This wine has plenty of those Alsatian varieties in it, so a raclette is pretty perfect there, but going with a Wisconsin brick gives it a twist and then over Wavy Lay’s potato chips adds just the right “Fossil and Fawn” funk.

We will add a little typical raclette accessories: cornichons, a little smoked meat (ours will be Proscuitto to make the Fruilano feel at home), gherkins and instead of the traditional fingerling potatos, the wavy chips!

I don’t have a raclette cheese melter and in lieu of running out and buying one, we found an internet hack by Cook the Story

If you have a raclette grill you can go the fancier route. Here’s a great post by eat, little bird with ideas for a dinner with raclette.

We couldn’t find a Wisconsin brick cheese, but our cheese monger suggested the Dubliner as a good substitution. (see the photo above) We also picked up a raclette.

The wine had a bit of funk on the nose and then lots of different aromatics! This wine is unfiltered. You can see that it is cloudy in the glass and you can see the sediment in the bottom of the bottle. The first sip started off feeling simple and pleasant and then all the different parts of my mouth erupted with a little “hey what’s that and what’s that!”. I won’t say this wine is complex in depth, it doesn’t necessarily evolve in the glass, but it has alot going on and is highly entertaining on your palate! It is fun and funky…I’m channelling a little “Commodores” here with a little “Brick House” and “Play that funky music”. The wine went well with everything, taking the pickles, cheese, chips and prosciutto out on the dance floor for a spin, each to a different song.

All in all, a really good time! It’s just $20 a bottle…that is if they have any left.

Join us again tomorrow for our Day 2 pick!

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Soupe aux choux and a Grüner Veltliner from Illahe

December 10, 2018

Illahe2017 Estate Gruner Velthiner with Cabbage Soup

“On the fourth day of wine my true love pulled out of the cellar for me, a Grüner Veltliner from Illahe.”

Illahe Vineyards

ILLAHE, pronounced Ill-Uh-Hee, is a local Chinook word meaning “earth” or “place” or “soil”
From the Illahe Vineyards site

This summer we visited Illahe Vineyards in the Willamette Valley. Illahe is located in the southern part of the Willamette Valley west of Salem. They are within the proposed Mt. Pisgah/Polk County AVA.

If you want more details on the AVAs and proposed AVAs in the Willamette Valley, you can check out our post https://www.crushedgrapechronicles.com/oregons-willamette-valley-avas-a-primer/

We spent a morning at the vineyard with Lowell Ford who owns runs the vineyard with his wife Pauline. Their son Brad Ford is the winemaker and the force behind the proposed Mt. Pisgah/Polk County AVA.

Illahe Vineyard in the proposed Mount Pisgah/Polk County AVA

Sitting on the patio in front of the winery you look south down the slope and across the vineyard. They sit between 225 and 440 feet here. They get earlier budbreak, as they are a warmer site than most in the Willamette Valley, but they also get the Van Duzer winds which cool the vineyard in the evening and give them a long growing season.

Illahe 2017 Estate Grüner Veltliner

While they primarily focus on Pinot Noir (and we look forward to a future post telling you all about those, including teaser their 1899 which is made) , they also grow Pinot Gris, Grüner Veltliner, Tempranillo, Viognier, Langrein, Schioppettino and Teroldego. Today we will focus on the Grüner that we picked up when we visited.

I reached out to Kathy, who runs their tasting room and had set us up for our visit and interview and she kindly put us in touch with Brad the winemaker. Brad responded with this great description of the wine, followed by a simple seasonal pairing:

The 2017 Illahe grüner veltliner introduces itself with light but dense aromas of dried peach, honey crisp apple, and fresh cedar board. This wine is fermented partially in acacia barrels which offer herbal flavors and a complex texture. The palate also contains flavors of red grapefruit, graham cracker, and white nectarine. The balanced acid and strong mouthfeel create a beautiful wine ready for drinking or aging.
A nice, simple pairing for the gruner in the wintertime is a soupe aux choux, or cabbage soup. The lightness and fattiness of the soup pair well with a white wine like gruner. I like a homemade chicken broth and homemade sourdough wheat bread for the croute. Of course, a little pinch of classic gruner white pepper on top of the soup is the kicker.

Brad Ford, Winemaker Illahe Vineyards

Soupe aux Choux

Some refer to this as “Old Shoe Soup” (that would be Brits who were poking fun at the French words). This is a simple Cabbage soup. I searched through a few recipes and then adapted one to fit.

Here is the link to the recipe I based my soupe aux choux on https://www.thefrenchcookingacademy.com/cabbage-soup/

For my Soupe aux Choux I deviated a little from the recipe, with turkey stock from Thanksgiving, using bacon I had on hand and adding some par boiled potatoes left from the tartiflette I made earlier this week.

Tastings and Pairings

Michael was a bit skeptical of “cabbage soup” I reassured him, letting him know there was bacon in it. Regardless he requested a back up of fish and chips for lunch. So we paired both.

He was pleasantly surprised at the soupe aux choux and finished off most of his bowl. The fish and chips we found only paired with the addition of tartar sauce.

Illahe2017 Estate Gruner Velthiner with Fish and Chips

We found the wine needed to open a bit and warm to let out the nose. I did get honey crisp apples, a hazy bit of white pepper and wet stones on the nose. Later I noted something woodsy which…hmmm okay we can call it cedar board. On the palate I got a tartness which yes, reminded me with the bitter notes in the background of pink or red grapefruit and then under ripe apricots.

The soup was light, but warm and lovely and was perfect for the pairing on this cloudy day, to enjoy as the early afternoon sun peaked through the clouds and my windows. The croute which was sour dough baguette was topped with gouda which for me kicked the flavor up a notch and gave the Grüner even more to play with.

To visit Illahe:

To schedule an appointment email Kathy: [email protected] or call 503-831-1248.

We will have more on our visit with Illahe in the future, including our visit to their beautiful cellar and discussions on their 1899 Pinot Noir.

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