Drew & Guigal

As far as the weather goes yesterday was just about perfect and very unusual for this area at the end of August.  There were almost no clouds, the humidity was low and the temperature topped out at 78 degrees.  There was a small group that got together for dinner to cook a cow.  In reality it wasn't the whole cow, but it was a 4 inch thick, dry aged rib-eye steak that was half grilled and half roasted.  It was delicious.

There were two wines and both were very good.  The first was a 2006 Drew Family Cellars, Ridgeline Syrah from the Mendocino Ridge AVA.  A number of Syrahs in California have gone the way of some of the Cabernet Sauvignons.  They have become big, over ripe monsters with very high alcohols and syrupy sweetness.  The Drew was certainly cut from a different cloth.  The nose was hard, dark cherries, some earthy spice and some wisps of raw meat.  The wine was a definite purple, showing its young age.  The flavors were definitely fruit forward with dark cherries, some plum notes and that little bit of raw meat.  Great acidity and tannin, a medium mouth feel and a long, smoky finish that stretched on for a good time.  With the food it was almost perfect since there was enough tannin and acid to cut through the fattiness of the steak. 

If I had to compare it to a European wine it would be Crozes Hermitage.  There wasn't quite enough depth to rival a Hermitage and it was a little too refined for a St Joseph.  This wine still needs a couple of years. but the good news is that there are two more in the cellar.  It disappeared quickly.

The second wine was a 2003 E. Guigal Hermitage.  Deeper and darker than the Drew in the glass, this wine had a touch of brett to it that took several minutes to work it's way out.  Dark color, notes of raw meat and plums in the nose.  The taste was deeper and fuller than the Drew but the wine tasted a tiny bit hot, and a little bit old.  Long finish to this wine as well and it was still a joy to drink when the brett aromas faded. 

Drew, 14.4% alcohol and $33.
Guigal, 13% alcohol and $70.

Roero Arneis

Another of the wines in the recent mixed case was an Arneis, Specifically a 2009 Antico Contado Roero Arneis Renesio from the Piemonte region of northwest Italy. This is an old variety that is enjoying something of a renaissance and the Roero region is at the forefront.

Very bright green/gold color in the glass the wine smelled like the perfectly ripe pear one gets when they hang on the tree until fully ready to eat.  This was a very full bodied wine and very mouth-filling. The pears were there in force with a tiny bit of apple and yellow plums underpinning the pear flavor.  There was very good acidity for such a full bodied wine.  The finish was fruity and then bone dry with acid. 

Dinner was also a little unusual.  A nearby farmer is now producing and selling locally Cornish hens, small chickens with a full taste.  I brought home one that was 1 1/4 pounds then stuffed it with fresh sage, thyme and rosemary, dusted it with some coarse salt, put it in a small skillet and popped everything in a 350 degree toaster oven for 40 minutes.  The result is pictured below.  There was some fresh bail gnudi served in a freshly made sauce of just harvested red and yellow tomatoes to go with the poultry.

The acid in the wine killed the richness of the hen and the flavors in the wine were a nice compliment to the gnudi, which were full of ricotta cheese and fresh basil.  Good meal.

13% alcohol and $15.

Rosebank 16 Year

One can't live by wine alone.

For some time I've been searching for a bottle of Rosebank Scottish whisky.  Obviously, from the picture I finally found a bottle.  Rosebank is a lowland malt, triple distilled, and lighter than its highland cousins.  The distillery closed in 1993 so it took some searching to find a bottle.  This bottling was by Gordon & McPhail and was distilled in 1991 and bottled in 2007.

The nose was quite flowery and lightly fruity.  Good warmth and there were hints of orange and honey flavors.  This was a very elegant and refined whisky, more like a cognac than my usual island whiskys.  Very easy to drink. 

46% alcohol and $70

Salmon

Good piece of salmon last night for dinner.  I dusted it with salt, garlic powder and pimenton and then pan seared each side quickly.  It then went into the oven to finish cooking.  Cabbage coleslaw and a couple of just picked yellow pear tomatoes rounded out the plate.  The wine was a glass of fino sherry.  More about that later.  Good meal.

Kinkead Ridge Cabernet Franc 2004

Over the last few days I've been following via Face Book and other media the journey of some Kinkead Ridge wines to Australia, purchased by a private consumer and shipped via FedEx. That certainly made me thirsty for a Kinkead Ridge wine so last night I opened a bottle, my next to last, of the 2004 Cabernet Franc.

Dinner was a filet mignon, pan seared on both sides then tossed in a moderate oven to finish cooking.  There was a pan sauce with the drippings, some shallots, vermouth, cognac, blackberries and butter that simmered while the meat cooked.  When the filet were done I put the sauce on the plates in an attractive swirl, placed the filet in the middle and topped it with some more of the sauce.  There was a green salad and some roasted tomatoes also on the plate.

The problem with the wines from Kinkead Ridge is that are so easy and good to drink that it takes a lot of willpower to let them age.  This bottle was stashed away in an odd location so it did get some bottle age to it.  The aroma was wonderful, full of black raspberries and bright cherries and clean earth.  Those aromas had mellowed into a wonderful bouquet.  The wine was medium weight in the mouth and the flavors were soft and appealing.  Both the cherries and raspberries were there, along with a touch of cinnamon and some subtle hints of vanilla.   The acid was still wonderful in this wine and there was just enough tannin to complete the package.  The wine was fully mature, lean, svelte, and all the parts were completely harmonized.  This wasn't a loud, brash teenager, this was a mature woman with a few discreet stories to tell.  They were stories I bought into, and they were just about perfect with the filet and the sauce.  Wonderful bottle of wine.

12.9% alcohol and $15 when purchased.  355 cases produced.

Summer Reading

Three new books and one old standard managed to get me through the late July and August heat wave.  With temperatures in the mid to upper 90 degree range it was time to stay inside and read.

From the bottom up.....
Authentic Wine by Jamie Goode and Sam Harrop MW, subtitled Toward Natural and Sustainable Winemaking. If one is into understanding the technical aspect of grape growing, wine making and more this is a valuable book.  Technical writing, but thoroughly readable. I'm about 2/3 of the way through it and know much more than I did about organic, biodynamic, sustainable viticulture, etc.    My only complaint is the incredibly bright cover.  I have examined the book thoroughly and I have no idea where the battery replacement compartment is, and there must be a battery to a make a cover this bright. University of California Press.


To End All Wars, a Story of Loyalty and Rebellion, 1914-1918 by Adam Hochschild.  A completely fascinating and readable account of World War War I from mostly a British perspective. The author not only examines the military aspects of the war but also the anti-war and labor movement in Britain at the time.  Remarkably these two sides overlap each other with members of the same families being on different sides of the issue.  If there's a "history streak" in your reading habits I recommend picking up this book.  Really good stuff.  Houghton Miflin Harcourt. 

A Separate Peace by John Knowles.  I read this novel a long, long time ago in a galaxy far away....it was first published in 1959.  I was in a book store recently and there was a new, paperback edition, and since I have fond memories of the book it was time to give it another try.  This one is set at a New England prep school in 1942 and 1943.  Short, dramatic, moving and just a good story about shattered dreams.  It's a much deeper book than I remember from first reading far too many years ago.  Scribner.

A Vineyard in My Glass by Gerald Asher.  No one writing about wine moves me more than Gerald Asher.  This book is collected essays, mostly  from Gourmet Magazine.  Some are 20 years old but they are fresh and alive.  I subscribed to this magazine for 20 years, and most of those years it was just to read Asher's columns. More than any critic or wine writer this is the person I respect the most and the one who set me off on some serious wine quests.  Keep this one by your bedside and a chapter a night will make you thirsty the next morning.  University of California Press.

Cotes du Rhone

There was a special on flank steak at the market the other day so we bought several, divided them in two and froze what we didn't fix the first night.  The first part was rubbed with garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, salt, chipotle powder and pepper and allowed to marinate for several hours.

When the steak came off the grill the top came off a bottle of Cave de Rasteau, Le Dome du Grand Bois, Cotes du Rhone from the 2009 vintage.  This was one of the wines in the mixed case discussed below.  The wine was a mixture of grenache, cinsault and carrignane.  Fruity, straightforward nose that had a few traces of spice and earth in it.  Purplish in the glass.  Good medium body and good fruit flavors of berries and earth.  Good tannin profile here, a fair amount of it, but the tannins were ripe and friendly.  This is a happy wine.  It takes no deep thought to enjoy it and it washes down good food  leaving a pleasant taste in the mouth.  It does it with little expense also.

There was some ratatouille to go along with the steak and the wine may have been even a better match with the eggplant, zucchini, squash, onions, and tomatoes in that dish.  Very tasty with the veggies.

13% alcohol and $12.50