On the 14th, I opened up a bottle of 2006 Reverdito Barolo that I picked up from Vinopolis. Selling for about $18 a bottle, I was highly skeptical that it could amount to much more than a pleasant nebbiolo (which is still a very good thing). Barolo "wine of kings" for less than $20? You can understand my pause. Ah, but good fortune is at hand: it is actually a very good wine. After the initial tasting - dark fruits and leather and gentle tannins - I continued to sample it daily, until KT and I finished it off on Tuesday....and it still tasted pleasant and showing no signs of turning. A case purchase can't be far behind1
Last night, we opened a 2001 Marcel Deiss Pinot Blanc, to pair with an apple-fennel hash, sausages and steamed small white potatoes. Amazingly, the wine still has life and vigor. Just the slightest hint of oxidation to me, but the full strength of the mouth-filling acidity and tart apple crispness never faltered.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Taking the Gloves off with the Minkster
What a treat for a Monday night. KT made one of our favorite dishes, the now infamous green chile pork stew, coupled with mashed spuds, steamed-to-perfection broccoli and a lovely salad to follow. We were blessed with a visit from the just-back-from Italy Chanel, who regaled us with delightful stories of Rome and Naples and brought a delightful little bottle of Touraine Sauvignon Blanc from Domaine Vincent Ricard.
I hastily opened that chilled offering and was delighted to find a light bodied, herbal wine that danced daintily on the palette. I quickly sliced up some aged dutch goat cheese and soppresata salami and the wonders of the chalky hills of the Loire came swimming up in my mouth, calling back the fall of '09 when the AP and I spent a hall of fame afternoon in the hilltop town of Sancerre, sitting in an outdoor cafe bedazzled with assorted fresh goat cheese offerings and a pitcher of local sancerre blanc all the while surrounding by an expansive view of acres of soon to be harvested minerally, herbal gooseberry, grassy, cat pee, mown lawn grape goodness. One of the finest wine/food moments in my life.
Then on to dinner and I offered up a 2000 Produttori Barbaresco from the single vineyard of Moccagatta. This wine has enough tannins to go longer, if need be, but tasted just fine right now. Earthy and balanced with flavors of dark red berries and earth and plums and earth, it was not the best match for the spicy pork stew but it wasn't bad. I've read that the Moccagatta vineyard is one of the highest in Barbaresco and is known for its earthy power. Amen to that. And the good news: there's another bottle of it for another day!
I hastily opened that chilled offering and was delighted to find a light bodied, herbal wine that danced daintily on the palette. I quickly sliced up some aged dutch goat cheese and soppresata salami and the wonders of the chalky hills of the Loire came swimming up in my mouth, calling back the fall of '09 when the AP and I spent a hall of fame afternoon in the hilltop town of Sancerre, sitting in an outdoor cafe bedazzled with assorted fresh goat cheese offerings and a pitcher of local sancerre blanc all the while surrounding by an expansive view of acres of soon to be harvested minerally, herbal gooseberry, grassy, cat pee, mown lawn grape goodness. One of the finest wine/food moments in my life.
Then on to dinner and I offered up a 2000 Produttori Barbaresco from the single vineyard of Moccagatta. This wine has enough tannins to go longer, if need be, but tasted just fine right now. Earthy and balanced with flavors of dark red berries and earth and plums and earth, it was not the best match for the spicy pork stew but it wasn't bad. I've read that the Moccagatta vineyard is one of the highest in Barbaresco and is known for its earthy power. Amen to that. And the good news: there's another bottle of it for another day!
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Va bene!
Apologies to Suzie, if that's not how you say "Wow!" in Italian.
The highly anticipated Swirl occurred last night at Barry and Suzie's cucina, the pork roast holding center court. The usual suspects were on hand, save for that social butterfly Kay, who has created such a delightful oasis in Salem that her guest beds are seldom, if ever, empty. We soldiered on without her, hardy souls that we are :-D
My angst over the perfect wine for the cubano pork settled on a 2001 Mas Donis, Capcanes, from the montsant region of Spain, the area surrounding the more famous priorat. Made mostly from old vines (80+ years) garnacha, it seemed a good choice for a sumptuously roasted pig. Indeed it was, the earthiness complementing the moist, succulent pork to a "T"...at least in this taster's opinion.
Yes, we had more than pork (but it is the pork that still resonates most in my mind). Jewel blessed the proceedings with a kale/corn saute that was a divine choice. Ruth brought a potato dish (?kugel) that baked up yummy with mushrooms nestled within. KT freshened our palates with a splendid spinach, roasted red pepper salad, and Lee (with Rick doing the "flip") brought it all home with a dreamy, creamy pumpkin caramel creation.
The table also sported a lovely melange of wines: barbera d' alba from Vietti (!), very lively with lots of festive italian fruit; pirouette from WW Long Shadows, dark fruit candied goodness in it for the long haul; cabernet sauvignon from Bogle, a really approachable Cali cab - words I don't often utter; and another very drinkable cab from Cali with the moniker of "Cask"....so drinkable, in fact, that it was drained first!
These crisp beautiful autumnal days are off to a flying start. I love this "shoulder" wine season. Still time to revel in whites and roses (like there's an 'off' season for that!), yet the fare begins to resemble the dinner hour and the wine choices, growing darker by the day. This my friends is truly la dolce vita.
The highly anticipated Swirl occurred last night at Barry and Suzie's cucina, the pork roast holding center court. The usual suspects were on hand, save for that social butterfly Kay, who has created such a delightful oasis in Salem that her guest beds are seldom, if ever, empty. We soldiered on without her, hardy souls that we are :-D
My angst over the perfect wine for the cubano pork settled on a 2001 Mas Donis, Capcanes, from the montsant region of Spain, the area surrounding the more famous priorat. Made mostly from old vines (80+ years) garnacha, it seemed a good choice for a sumptuously roasted pig. Indeed it was, the earthiness complementing the moist, succulent pork to a "T"...at least in this taster's opinion.
Yes, we had more than pork (but it is the pork that still resonates most in my mind). Jewel blessed the proceedings with a kale/corn saute that was a divine choice. Ruth brought a potato dish (?kugel) that baked up yummy with mushrooms nestled within. KT freshened our palates with a splendid spinach, roasted red pepper salad, and Lee (with Rick doing the "flip") brought it all home with a dreamy, creamy pumpkin caramel creation.
The table also sported a lovely melange of wines: barbera d' alba from Vietti (!), very lively with lots of festive italian fruit; pirouette from WW Long Shadows, dark fruit candied goodness in it for the long haul; cabernet sauvignon from Bogle, a really approachable Cali cab - words I don't often utter; and another very drinkable cab from Cali with the moniker of "Cask"....so drinkable, in fact, that it was drained first!
These crisp beautiful autumnal days are off to a flying start. I love this "shoulder" wine season. Still time to revel in whites and roses (like there's an 'off' season for that!), yet the fare begins to resemble the dinner hour and the wine choices, growing darker by the day. This my friends is truly la dolce vita.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Laugh Night Repast
Monday's have become our laugh night. Although we aren't often slouched in front of the television, for some reason a series of what are called "situation comedies" have caught our fancy. To fortify our soon to come belly laughs, we had a simple dinner of last of the season corn on the cob, compliments of our CSA and supported that with a sausage/potato/egg in a skillet bake. Nice and spicy, the Italian sausage! To embellish this melange, we had a 2008 Penner-Ash Roseo, or as they describe it, a pink, pink wine. Yum! Now I know why we bought it. We are not huge P-A fans; the few times that we've gone to the winery, they just seem so snobbish, so California-esque. But the Roseo (which I don't think was a mercy buy, since we don't feel any affinity towards the winery or servers) and a Riesling found a home here and we have enjoyed them. It's nice to have an alternative to the ubiquitous pinot noir.
This coming Saturday we will be going to Barry & Suzie's for a SWIRL. Suzie's famous pork! A whole week to find the perfect wine. My favorite homework.
This coming Saturday we will be going to Barry & Suzie's for a SWIRL. Suzie's famous pork! A whole week to find the perfect wine. My favorite homework.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Recent Swoonings
It's only Wednesday and already KT and I have knocked back two sensational wine pairings. Monday night, it was a delicious roasted chicken thighs/cherry tomato feast graciously accompanied by Lopez-Heredia's 2001 Vina Cubiillo. Primarily a tempranillo blend (65%), this wine was suave and sultry, deceptively so. It's so comfortable in its skin that it doesn't need to strut; it purrs with subtle pleasure that you can dabble in or go deep if you take the time. Like a skilled lover this one: relax, you are in good hands, and L-H is quickly becoming my favorite winery of this time.
Tuesday night's treat was more spontaneous. Our "tub o' vegetables" from the CSA included some zebra skinned tomatoes. KT had her heart set on some chopped tomatoes with buffalo mozarella and basil, dressed lovingly with an artisnal olive oil from Oregon, no less. It was tremendously good, with flavors that just kept coming in waves. For some reason, I opted to pair this with an Austrian riesling. The 2004 Prager riesling was spot on with this dish. The wine's lovely acidity worked in harmony with the acidity of the tomatoes to create a clean, bracing flavor that kept the acid of the riesling intact while allowing its caramel flavors to show through. No unctuousness or insipidness here; just tight, taut, clean flavors that soared. Six years in our basement had not induced any oxidative qualities to this wine; it was pure heaven. Can't wait to see what the rest of the week holds!
Tuesday night's treat was more spontaneous. Our "tub o' vegetables" from the CSA included some zebra skinned tomatoes. KT had her heart set on some chopped tomatoes with buffalo mozarella and basil, dressed lovingly with an artisnal olive oil from Oregon, no less. It was tremendously good, with flavors that just kept coming in waves. For some reason, I opted to pair this with an Austrian riesling. The 2004 Prager riesling was spot on with this dish. The wine's lovely acidity worked in harmony with the acidity of the tomatoes to create a clean, bracing flavor that kept the acid of the riesling intact while allowing its caramel flavors to show through. No unctuousness or insipidness here; just tight, taut, clean flavors that soared. Six years in our basement had not induced any oxidative qualities to this wine; it was pure heaven. Can't wait to see what the rest of the week holds!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
If A Blog Falls in the Forest...
The intervening month has been brought to you by a two week vacation and a two week cold. Most of the former was embellished with drinking astonishingly good scotch with a scot. Glenmorangie's Quinta Ruban is a gift from the gods.
This week, though, now that I can drink wine without coughing my lungs out has seen the return of some gorgeous offerings. Earlier in the summer, I shared a bottle of 2000 Lopez de Heredia Vina Gravonia with a close group of friends and it b-l-e-w m-e a-w-a-y! A ten year old white rioja that was among the finest beverages I have ever consumed. So, I sought out a sequel (I can't believe this wine is still around) and it was equally astonishing. 100% viura grapes...mystical, strange spices, reminded me of retsina in spice profile (KT agreed). Just an extraordinary wine of amazing depth and I didn't find it oxidized or showing any deleterious signs of age. I wish I could drink it weekly.
Later in the week, we had a great bar-b-que burger fest (the Oregon fall is devine) and I opened a 2000 Perrin Cote du Rhone Reserve. It too was tasting at its peak, with a profound cinnamon nose and delightful balanced dark fruit (plum, fig, prune) taste and a very, very long finish. The full flavor that I always associate with CDR (wild herbs and spice) but with an elegance that I've not known in a generic rhone.
Tonight I'm back at a wine that I bought a case of and it is tasting so much better than when we first opened a few bottles. It restores my faith in the wine seller who tempted me into a case. The 2005 Domaine du Prieure Bourgogne is a delightful unpretentious great food wine. Pork and pasta were the guests and monsieur Prieure was a perfect companion. Light bodied, but full of classic pinot elegance, sour cherries, cloves and a blood/iron flavor that speaks of the dirt. The fruit is so much more apparent tonight. In previous openings it had mostly seemed like tart cherries and little else. Nice to know that it, like we, is/are evolving.
This week, though, now that I can drink wine without coughing my lungs out has seen the return of some gorgeous offerings. Earlier in the summer, I shared a bottle of 2000 Lopez de Heredia Vina Gravonia with a close group of friends and it b-l-e-w m-e a-w-a-y! A ten year old white rioja that was among the finest beverages I have ever consumed. So, I sought out a sequel (I can't believe this wine is still around) and it was equally astonishing. 100% viura grapes...mystical, strange spices, reminded me of retsina in spice profile (KT agreed). Just an extraordinary wine of amazing depth and I didn't find it oxidized or showing any deleterious signs of age. I wish I could drink it weekly.
Later in the week, we had a great bar-b-que burger fest (the Oregon fall is devine) and I opened a 2000 Perrin Cote du Rhone Reserve. It too was tasting at its peak, with a profound cinnamon nose and delightful balanced dark fruit (plum, fig, prune) taste and a very, very long finish. The full flavor that I always associate with CDR (wild herbs and spice) but with an elegance that I've not known in a generic rhone.
Tonight I'm back at a wine that I bought a case of and it is tasting so much better than when we first opened a few bottles. It restores my faith in the wine seller who tempted me into a case. The 2005 Domaine du Prieure Bourgogne is a delightful unpretentious great food wine. Pork and pasta were the guests and monsieur Prieure was a perfect companion. Light bodied, but full of classic pinot elegance, sour cherries, cloves and a blood/iron flavor that speaks of the dirt. The fruit is so much more apparent tonight. In previous openings it had mostly seemed like tart cherries and little else. Nice to know that it, like we, is/are evolving.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
The Moody Blues Got Nothing On Me
Tuesday afternoon and the weather has given notice that the glorious days of fall are here. As with most seasons in Oregon, they begin and end with rain which works for me! Simple home cooking tonight. Tried my hand at spaghetti carbonara (primo chef KT was occupied with work) and produced a plausible facsimile. The encyclopedic tome for the recipe, "Italian Cooking", suggested a light red to accompany. Lacking the time and energy to scare up a lighter italian wine from our cellar, I settled, instead, on a half bottle of Pinot from Willakensie; their 2007 estate cuvee. Bought a case of these from Vino a while back and they are perfect for just such occasions.
The wine worked well with my gringo version of italian pasta; dried cranberries, dusty spices (cinnamon, nutmeg) and fading roses a serviceable companion. Meanwhile, KT arrives from her fifteen feet after work commute and whips up a red curry dish with eggplant (yikes!). I opened a bottle of Penner Ash riesling for her enjoyment, sticking with the 2007 vintage. Never one to pass up an open bottle, I sampled a bit and am anxious to dive back in soon. It was delightfully dry, with petroleum hints that make a riesling so unique. As my palate was somewhat jaded by the pinot/pasta combo, I expect my next tasting of this riesling will show the real stuff. We shall see.
The wine worked well with my gringo version of italian pasta; dried cranberries, dusty spices (cinnamon, nutmeg) and fading roses a serviceable companion. Meanwhile, KT arrives from her fifteen feet after work commute and whips up a red curry dish with eggplant (yikes!). I opened a bottle of Penner Ash riesling for her enjoyment, sticking with the 2007 vintage. Never one to pass up an open bottle, I sampled a bit and am anxious to dive back in soon. It was delightfully dry, with petroleum hints that make a riesling so unique. As my palate was somewhat jaded by the pinot/pasta combo, I expect my next tasting of this riesling will show the real stuff. We shall see.
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