OK. This is admittedly weird. I direct you here to discuss wines and today we will deliberately go in another direction because while researching Arbor Crest Vineyards for this week's tasting I found something much more interesting...Royal Riblet! Sounds like an entree, right? Read on.
Royal Riblet (not kidding) was an inventor credited with inventing a tramway which was instumental in public works projects in the northwest. He was born in Iowa in 1871, moved to South Dakota in 1890, and then to Spokane, Washington at the turn of the century. Riblet was a tinkerer with things mechanical, opening a bicycle repair shop in South Dakota and becoming a long distance cyclist in the 1890's. Imagine the technology and terrain!
Riblet's move to the Pacific Northwest was prompted by his older brother, Byron, who was a civil engineer educated at the University of Minnesota and employed at the time by the Northern Pacific Railroad. Byron Riblet patented many improvements to tramway technology but didn't actually invent the thing, itself. He did, however, start the Riblet Tramway Company in Spokane, hiring two of his brothers to manage different departments. Royal had the blacksmith shop for fabricating parts until 1933 when he was fired for diverting company money to his own personal use!
So why is Royal Riblet relevant to a discussion of Arbor Crest wines? Well, the focal point of Arbor Crest is a historical landmark called Cliff House contructed in 1924 on the edge of a cliff 450 feet above the Spokane River. It is a three story Florentine Mansion with extravagant tiling surrounded by patios, gardens and pools. It was originally called Eagle's Nest by its owner, one Royal Riblet who may have built it with moneys purloined from the Riblet Tramway Company!
The Mielke family, fruit growers for a century in the area, renamed it Cliff House when they purchased it in 1985, three years into their Arbor Crest winemaking venture. In December of last year, sad to say the house was gutted by a fire caused by a defective power strip. The nearest fire hydrant was more than a mile away. The structral integrity of the building was left intact, however, and the family is intent upon historically reconstructing the interior.
Come to the tasting Saturday March 19th 3-5pm and receive a free half pound of Pecorino Romano cheese by saying the secret password, "Royal Riblet".
Don
Monday, March 14, 2011
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Van Ruiten of Lodi, California
So what makes a winery special, accolades from the critics or a really good history? With Van Ruiten of Lodi, California you get both. My passion is history though, so here goes. John Van Ruiten was a young dutch immigrant after World War II who settled in Lodi to raise cattle and run a dairy farm. He had a european's love of wine and soon bought an old Zinfandel vineyard at a time when Lodi was known as a grape growing region for bulk wine producers. Over the years Van Ruiten added to his vineyard land holdings and supplied grapes to Ravenswood, Delicato (DFV), Blackstone, and Constellation, amongst other larger wineries. In 1999 he broke ground on his own winery and had his first Van Ruiten vintage the same year.
In 2001 Van Ruiten hired Ryan Leeman, an upstate New York cheesemaker, to make wine for him, an oddly appropriate move for a dutchman. Leeman's efforts have earned him the "best Zinfandel in America" award from the Wall Street Journal and Hugh Johnson's "one of the twelve best wines in the world" recognition. Those accolades were for the 2007 vintage Zinfandel characterized as "rich, juicy, and velvety with blackberry and coffee". We will be tasting the '08 here Friday evening which is fine with me because the vintage after a great one is usually a sleeper.
Lodi is located halfway between the Sierra Foothills and the San Francisco Bay. The Van Ruitens (three generations) have 800 acres in vines with the best 150 reserved for their own label. Van Ruiten is a custom crush contracting winemaker (like DFV) that is increasing its production capability from 3,000-5,000 cases to 80,000-100,000 annually! The Lodi appellation produces 25-40% of each of the major wine grape varities in the state. Apparently the soil and climate are about perfect.
Mention this article at our Friday evening (5-7pm) tasting here at the store to avaid the $5 cover charge.
Don
In 2001 Van Ruiten hired Ryan Leeman, an upstate New York cheesemaker, to make wine for him, an oddly appropriate move for a dutchman. Leeman's efforts have earned him the "best Zinfandel in America" award from the Wall Street Journal and Hugh Johnson's "one of the twelve best wines in the world" recognition. Those accolades were for the 2007 vintage Zinfandel characterized as "rich, juicy, and velvety with blackberry and coffee". We will be tasting the '08 here Friday evening which is fine with me because the vintage after a great one is usually a sleeper.
Lodi is located halfway between the Sierra Foothills and the San Francisco Bay. The Van Ruitens (three generations) have 800 acres in vines with the best 150 reserved for their own label. Van Ruiten is a custom crush contracting winemaker (like DFV) that is increasing its production capability from 3,000-5,000 cases to 80,000-100,000 annually! The Lodi appellation produces 25-40% of each of the major wine grape varities in the state. Apparently the soil and climate are about perfect.
Mention this article at our Friday evening (5-7pm) tasting here at the store to avaid the $5 cover charge.
Don
Friday, March 4, 2011
Cabernet vs Pinot Noir
This entry will be a little different. Rather than getting all scholarly on you, this will be stream-of-consciousness instead, relying on my thirty years of accrued wine knowledge to show the fundamental differences between the two finest red wine grape types in the world. The occasion for this rant is this afternoon's tasting of cabs and pinots and my expectation that the cabs will show better and be much better received.
Cabernet is grown everywhere where fine wine vineyards exist and seems to produce well wherever planted. So if you want a good wine selection, all things being equal, hedge your bets and get a cab at any price you desire. Your selection should display a breadth of complex and complimentary flavors housed in a medium body format which may include the jammy forward fruit so popular currently. Typically Cabernet shows black currant, blackberry, and black cherry fruit flavors along with pepper, tar, and others drawn from oak barrel aging. Cabernet is ideally paired with strongly flavored red meat dishes like steaks and game and may require decanting or aerating prior to dinner.
Pinot is the ying to Cabernet's yang. It should not be widely planted because frankly it is a low yielding vine that performs poorly in most venues. Pinot compliments roast anything, meat sauces and gravies, and crosses over with salmon and fowl. The flavor profile includes cherry, strawberry, and raspberry but also ripe tomato, mushrooms, truffles, and barnyard. Pinot should be earthy but inexpensive examples often yield just the fruit flavors. Pinot Noir is lighter in body than Cabernet and features a longer flavor from its aroma (often floral) through its finish. The jamminess of Cabernet flavors contrasts with the elongated and winier flavors in Pinot Noir.
While there are good Cabernets and Pinots available everywhere at popular prices, as stated above, Cabernet is usually the safer bet. Really good Pinot is expensive and not always a solid performer even then. But when it is good, it makes the search seem minor compared to the reward. In case you can't tell, you can put me in the Pinot column.
Thanks for reading,
Don
Cabernet is grown everywhere where fine wine vineyards exist and seems to produce well wherever planted. So if you want a good wine selection, all things being equal, hedge your bets and get a cab at any price you desire. Your selection should display a breadth of complex and complimentary flavors housed in a medium body format which may include the jammy forward fruit so popular currently. Typically Cabernet shows black currant, blackberry, and black cherry fruit flavors along with pepper, tar, and others drawn from oak barrel aging. Cabernet is ideally paired with strongly flavored red meat dishes like steaks and game and may require decanting or aerating prior to dinner.
Pinot is the ying to Cabernet's yang. It should not be widely planted because frankly it is a low yielding vine that performs poorly in most venues. Pinot compliments roast anything, meat sauces and gravies, and crosses over with salmon and fowl. The flavor profile includes cherry, strawberry, and raspberry but also ripe tomato, mushrooms, truffles, and barnyard. Pinot should be earthy but inexpensive examples often yield just the fruit flavors. Pinot Noir is lighter in body than Cabernet and features a longer flavor from its aroma (often floral) through its finish. The jamminess of Cabernet flavors contrasts with the elongated and winier flavors in Pinot Noir.
While there are good Cabernets and Pinots available everywhere at popular prices, as stated above, Cabernet is usually the safer bet. Really good Pinot is expensive and not always a solid performer even then. But when it is good, it makes the search seem minor compared to the reward. In case you can't tell, you can put me in the Pinot column.
Thanks for reading,
Don
Monday, February 28, 2011
Wine Industry 2011: A Brave New World
Hello Again,
When last I mused here I mentioned DFV wines of California as possible subject matter for an article. The context for my query had to do with the relatively high quality in their portfolio considering the enormity of their production. DFV ranks as the 11th largest domestic wine producer yet seems to produce wines that outperform others at respective price points. After some research we have learned some surprising facts about DFV.
First of all DFV acknowleges a recognition that the customer (rightfully) insists on quality at popular prices, a mission statement of sorts. By making and marketing fifteen or so brands of domestic and imported wines, DFV has woven a fabric of production that seems to offer a quality product for most any need. Now by taking an historical look at the company, may we gain insights into what the modern wine industry has become?
DFV is an 85 year old company originated by Gaspare Indelicato, an immigrant from winemaking heritage in Italy. The company was originally called Delicato and struggled mightily early in its history due to prohibition and the depression. With land holdings in Lodi and headquartered in Manteca, California, the Delicato company plotted a parallel course to their better known rival, Gallo. Delicato, however was never as independent as Gallo and built longstanding business relationships with their neighboring wineries and grape suppliers like Giumarra, the largest non-winery grower of wine grapes in the world. When the time was right Delicato was ready to grow.
Today Delicato is DFV (Delicato Family Vineyards) and owns 10,000 acres in Lodi and the central coast. Their sales are $200 million annually and their production is 2.67 million cases and with a 23% increase in production in the past year, they are the fastest growing wine company in California. Now here is the staggering truth about DFV. They actually produce five times as much wine...for others. DFV is a custom winemaking outsourcer, a contractor for other mega-companies to rely upon to bolster production. Some of the most familiar labels on the grocery store shelves, though branded as another company's production, were really made by DFV! As might be expected with increased production, acquisitions in winery capacity and vineyards are ongoing. It is truly a brave new world for the domestic wine industry.
Don
When last I mused here I mentioned DFV wines of California as possible subject matter for an article. The context for my query had to do with the relatively high quality in their portfolio considering the enormity of their production. DFV ranks as the 11th largest domestic wine producer yet seems to produce wines that outperform others at respective price points. After some research we have learned some surprising facts about DFV.
First of all DFV acknowleges a recognition that the customer (rightfully) insists on quality at popular prices, a mission statement of sorts. By making and marketing fifteen or so brands of domestic and imported wines, DFV has woven a fabric of production that seems to offer a quality product for most any need. Now by taking an historical look at the company, may we gain insights into what the modern wine industry has become?
DFV is an 85 year old company originated by Gaspare Indelicato, an immigrant from winemaking heritage in Italy. The company was originally called Delicato and struggled mightily early in its history due to prohibition and the depression. With land holdings in Lodi and headquartered in Manteca, California, the Delicato company plotted a parallel course to their better known rival, Gallo. Delicato, however was never as independent as Gallo and built longstanding business relationships with their neighboring wineries and grape suppliers like Giumarra, the largest non-winery grower of wine grapes in the world. When the time was right Delicato was ready to grow.
Today Delicato is DFV (Delicato Family Vineyards) and owns 10,000 acres in Lodi and the central coast. Their sales are $200 million annually and their production is 2.67 million cases and with a 23% increase in production in the past year, they are the fastest growing wine company in California. Now here is the staggering truth about DFV. They actually produce five times as much wine...for others. DFV is a custom winemaking outsourcer, a contractor for other mega-companies to rely upon to bolster production. Some of the most familiar labels on the grocery store shelves, though branded as another company's production, were really made by DFV! As might be expected with increased production, acquisitions in winery capacity and vineyards are ongoing. It is truly a brave new world for the domestic wine industry.
Don
Friday, February 25, 2011
Hey Folks,
Massimo Malbec is probably one of the best values in red wine that I have tasted recently. The name means "massive" as you might expect and I am here to tell you that it is. It is not especially tannic but it is really slow to open up, so get out your aerators! Here is a paragraph on Malbec followed by one on this wine in particular.
Argentine Malbec, like most other fine new world wines on the market, originally had its home in France. It is part of the supporting cast in the red Bordeaux blend but has recently become best known as the principle grape of Cahor. This is all anecdotal though because the finest Malbec comes from Argentina where its acclaim is without question. It is one of the great wines of the world and has become the hottest selling varietal worldwide currently because of its popular pricing. Typically Argentine Malbec displays black currant, damson, and spice in its flavor profile and finds its finest terroir in Mendoza, the undisputed capitol of fine wine production in Argentina.
Massimo is a product of DFV wines of California which probably deserves an article itself because of the fine quality of their wine portfolio. Massimo is made at O. Fournier, a state of the art modern facility in Valle de Uco, Mendoza, under the guidance of winemaker Gale Sysock of DFV in cooperation with Julia Holupczak of O. Fournier. The winery is 100% gravity flow at a 4000ft elevation. The altitude mitigates the heat and allows for a longer ripening season.
The 2009 vintage is the first release of this label and displays dark garnet color with purple edges. The taste is blueberry and plum with violet and spice and an appropriately long finish. The grape composition is 95% Malbec and 5% Tempranillo. Enjoy this wine with steaks and other hearty red meats. The price is $10.99/btl so jump on it, folks!
Don
Massimo Malbec is probably one of the best values in red wine that I have tasted recently. The name means "massive" as you might expect and I am here to tell you that it is. It is not especially tannic but it is really slow to open up, so get out your aerators! Here is a paragraph on Malbec followed by one on this wine in particular.
Argentine Malbec, like most other fine new world wines on the market, originally had its home in France. It is part of the supporting cast in the red Bordeaux blend but has recently become best known as the principle grape of Cahor. This is all anecdotal though because the finest Malbec comes from Argentina where its acclaim is without question. It is one of the great wines of the world and has become the hottest selling varietal worldwide currently because of its popular pricing. Typically Argentine Malbec displays black currant, damson, and spice in its flavor profile and finds its finest terroir in Mendoza, the undisputed capitol of fine wine production in Argentina.
Massimo is a product of DFV wines of California which probably deserves an article itself because of the fine quality of their wine portfolio. Massimo is made at O. Fournier, a state of the art modern facility in Valle de Uco, Mendoza, under the guidance of winemaker Gale Sysock of DFV in cooperation with Julia Holupczak of O. Fournier. The winery is 100% gravity flow at a 4000ft elevation. The altitude mitigates the heat and allows for a longer ripening season.
The 2009 vintage is the first release of this label and displays dark garnet color with purple edges. The taste is blueberry and plum with violet and spice and an appropriately long finish. The grape composition is 95% Malbec and 5% Tempranillo. Enjoy this wine with steaks and other hearty red meats. The price is $10.99/btl so jump on it, folks!
Don
Monday, February 21, 2011
Wine and Food
Greetings All,
At last week's blind tasting here at the store, while between flights someone inquired as to whether the cheeses and crackers we were sampling could be affecting our perceptions of the wines. The answer clearly was "yes". Now considering how most all of the wines we enjoy are intended to be paired with foods, how often have we guessed wrong on our wine pairings for specific dinners? And if we "nail it" with the optimal wine choice, have we necessarily "failed it" with a lesser choice? Sounds like a question for therapy.
On a lighter note, here are some ground rules. White wine goes with fish, lighter chicken fare, picnic fare, shellfish, vegetables and salads, and perhaps mild goat cheese. Try a dry rose or a lighter red like Beaujolais or Pinot Noir for these foods if white is not your thing. Reds are really at their best when paired with red meats, oven roasted poultry, and cheese. If you want a crossover white for these things, try a particularly rich Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Chardonnay, or Viognier.
In general, european wines are more food-friendly than new world wines due to their dryness and higher acidity. However as my friend has pointed out to me, so much of our American cuisine has become lighter and lower in fat making the richness of new world wines often a more attractive choice than old europe.
Here are three personal rules of thumb: Italian wine with pasta; beer (dry rose?) with barbecue; and with chocolate, um, I don't know.
Thanks for reading,
Don
At last week's blind tasting here at the store, while between flights someone inquired as to whether the cheeses and crackers we were sampling could be affecting our perceptions of the wines. The answer clearly was "yes". Now considering how most all of the wines we enjoy are intended to be paired with foods, how often have we guessed wrong on our wine pairings for specific dinners? And if we "nail it" with the optimal wine choice, have we necessarily "failed it" with a lesser choice? Sounds like a question for therapy.
On a lighter note, here are some ground rules. White wine goes with fish, lighter chicken fare, picnic fare, shellfish, vegetables and salads, and perhaps mild goat cheese. Try a dry rose or a lighter red like Beaujolais or Pinot Noir for these foods if white is not your thing. Reds are really at their best when paired with red meats, oven roasted poultry, and cheese. If you want a crossover white for these things, try a particularly rich Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Chardonnay, or Viognier.
In general, european wines are more food-friendly than new world wines due to their dryness and higher acidity. However as my friend has pointed out to me, so much of our American cuisine has become lighter and lower in fat making the richness of new world wines often a more attractive choice than old europe.
Here are three personal rules of thumb: Italian wine with pasta; beer (dry rose?) with barbecue; and with chocolate, um, I don't know.
Thanks for reading,
Don
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Raymond Vineyards of Napa Valley
Hello All,
We have been selling Raymond wines for a few months with great success and recently the Family Classic Cabernet and R Collection Merlot have stunned with their complexity and class. Their presence in this store deserves some text here. Please read on.
The vintages in the store are '07 meaning they predate the current ownership, Boisset Family Estates, a multinational wine company comprising twenty properties in europe and california. They bought the property in 2009 from Kirin Holdings Company who in turn purchased it from the Raymond family. The 200 acre property and Raymond family management team has stayed intact with each sale. If you go to the winery website, however, Raymond's history prior to '09 just isn't there. So here it is.
The Raymond family tree in Napa goes back to the 1870s under the name Beringer; yes, that Beringer. The Raymond Winery name started with three family members, notably including winemaker Walter Raymond in 1971. The first vintage was 1974 and the wines in the store today were made by that same Walter Raymond.
Raymond is located in the Rutherford appellation of Napa and practices organic and biodynamic farming an ethic also espoused by Jean-Charles Boisset, head of the privately held Boisset Family estates based in Sausalito, California. If changes are forthcoming from Boisset ownership one can only hope they are modest This Friday we will be tasting the R Collection Merlot so stop in.
Don
We have been selling Raymond wines for a few months with great success and recently the Family Classic Cabernet and R Collection Merlot have stunned with their complexity and class. Their presence in this store deserves some text here. Please read on.
The vintages in the store are '07 meaning they predate the current ownership, Boisset Family Estates, a multinational wine company comprising twenty properties in europe and california. They bought the property in 2009 from Kirin Holdings Company who in turn purchased it from the Raymond family. The 200 acre property and Raymond family management team has stayed intact with each sale. If you go to the winery website, however, Raymond's history prior to '09 just isn't there. So here it is.
The Raymond family tree in Napa goes back to the 1870s under the name Beringer; yes, that Beringer. The Raymond Winery name started with three family members, notably including winemaker Walter Raymond in 1971. The first vintage was 1974 and the wines in the store today were made by that same Walter Raymond.
Raymond is located in the Rutherford appellation of Napa and practices organic and biodynamic farming an ethic also espoused by Jean-Charles Boisset, head of the privately held Boisset Family estates based in Sausalito, California. If changes are forthcoming from Boisset ownership one can only hope they are modest This Friday we will be tasting the R Collection Merlot so stop in.
Don
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