Basic Juice - the wine blog for my generation

Memo to Marquis

Memo

To: Rémy Pannier 

From: Basic Juice 

cc:  Growers (from the 500 of you viticulturing in 63 different appellations) who contribute grapeage to Marquis de la Tour's Rosé Sparkling Wine 

Date: 22 Jun 07

Re: Future branding/marketing of Marquis de la Tour Rosé (NV, $9) sparkling wine

____________________________________________

Dear Sirs/Madames:

Seeing as how Rémy Pannier is the Loire Valley's largest wine producer, I'm sure your company employs a number of smart, aspiring marketing wizkidz.  No doubt, one of them has already pitched the idea of rebranding Marquis de la Tour bubbly in order to make it more appealing to the US consumer.  I can picture the pitch in my mind....."look, we'll use those Budweiser frogs.  And instead of 'bud-weis-err' the amphibs can ribbit, "De-La-Tour!" 

Allow me to be the first to nip the aforementioned idea in the proverbial bud.  I'm sure the folks at Arrogant Frog are joyed to the max with their decision to leap into cute, crittery labeling.  However, your A+-value-priced, sparkling Rosé needs no such gimmicky hoo-ha.  I am happy to recommend a couple label modifications, free of charge:

1. On the front label, include these two succinct, highly descriptive adjectives in large, bold font (in English, as I and my fellow citizens no parlay much francais, if you catch my drift): DRY, SPARKLING WINE
2. On the back label, feel free to indulge the creativity of your marketeers.  Let them craft a nifty taste description (e.g. Marquis de la Tour Rosé is a lovely salmon-colored bubbly full of straw- and rasp-berry scents.  De la Tour's taste is divine with creamy texture, apple cider notes and a pleasant floral-berry finish) or pairing suggestions (e.g. Marquis de la Tour is the perfect accompaniment to summertime produce-enhanced dishes such as grilled tomato, basil and goat cheese sandwiches or lamb chops & farm fresh veggies)

I guarantee that five years down the road, you won't look back in shame at a label sporting pink frogs gussied up to look like something of a cross between Zoro and the Scarlet Pimpernel.  Rather, team Marquis will stand tall with pride at its simple, classy and info-rich label.  Heed me now; thank me later.

Technorati Tags: france, french wine, sparkling wine

1 + 1 =! 3

What exactly do you think this label is attempting to convey?

An unexpected value?
A rule-breaking, iconoclastic Spanish bubbly?
A jab at arithmetic?
A very poor 1st grade teacher?

Would that this mathematical expression equated to super tasting value Cava.  1+1=3 is a very serviceable sparkling wine.  However, at $13, I'll take the S to the V at ninedamndollars (or $6!) every day of the week.  It's just as good, and to my palate, it offers a bit more yeasty/toasty goodness.  However, if you're a grade school teacher, you may feel compelled to buy every bottle of "1-plus" in the store just so you can correct the label.

A more apt & honest label.

Bubbleicious March 29 @ 6:30

Attention Salt Lake City-based Basic Juicers.  Come, get your bubble on...

The details:

Bubbleicious (or how I stopped worrying and learned to love sparkling wine because it goes with everything)
Thursday, March 29. @ 6:30 PM
Kimball Distributing Showroom (2233 South 300 East)
Cost: $40 (payment by cash or check due at tasting)
Quetions/RSVP by Monday, March 26 to beau[At]basicjuice[D0t]com
Class size limited to 20

Sparkling wine is a beautiful thing. It goes splendidly with almost anything you’re having for dinner tonight, or the next night, or next Tuesday, or..you get the picture. Sample various styles of sparkling wine with a host of munch-able flavors. In addition to Champagne, discover the great taste and value of sparkling wine from Spain and Italy.

BAD DOGma

Time for an episode of, "Let's dispel some wine dogma."

I recall in the early days of my oenological oeducation there was always one exception to the following article of faith:  There isn't necessarily any relationship between wine quality and price."  In other words, pricey wine isn't always tasty wine.

But then, nearly every wine guru would add the 'Champagne exception'.  The Champagne exception goes something like this:  Champagne is a labor-intensive wine; each house can blend dozens of reserve wines to produce a consistent style, and thus, even though it's pricey, Champagne quality is reflected in its price.  Put another way: Champagne is good, and you get what you pay for.

Really?  I think not.

Over the past couple of weeks, I've been experimenting with entry level bubbly from some of the major Champagne houses.  And I'm here to testify that the aforementioned little chunk of wine dogma w/r/t Champagne & price is total hooey.  Why should one pay thirty or forty bucks for mediocre, one-dimensional sparkling wine?  While I think some Champagne in this price range is definitely worth the money (e.g. see: J. Lallement & Fils), There is no steadfast rule of relationship between price and Champagne quality.  It pays to do your Champagne homework, and ask questions at your friendly neighborhood wine shop.

Do you know of any wine dogma, which needs to be dispelled?

Sparklepoll Results

Apparently, a majority of you think Champagne is overpriced.  Yet 49% of ya'll suck it up and buy the bubbles because they are so tasty.

I have to agree.  Yes - it is expensive to produce.  However, by and large, Champagne is likely a wee bit overpriced.  Yet, I'll suck it up, plonk down the extra cash and pop the cork.

Stay tuned for another wine poll.

Bonus, post-poll Youtube fun:

• The moonwalking bird
• Dave's take on the Mac/PC ads
• Prince's 'Kiss' - the best music video ever!
• Tom Jone's Kiss Cover - perhaps the most ironic video ever

Poll: Champagne Truth

I love Champagne.  You love Champagne.  It's difficult not to be beguiled by the stuff.  However, occasionally, I feel a bit let down by the bubbles.  I know bringing up this topic may make me a wine heretic.  Don't get me wrong; if I only had one mixed case of wine on a desert island, 2 of the 12 wines would be Champagne - Krug and Salon Le Mesnil.

I was thrilled to discover that the theme for WineBloggingWednesday #25 was Champagne (the real deal, from France).  I tracked down a new-to-me marque:  Lenoble.  For $55, I took home Lenoble's 1996 Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs.  What could be better than sipping vintage bubbly on a rainy Wednesday night?

The wine was good.  That was the problem.  Technically, it was well-balanced, good flavors, yadda, yadda.  However, I just spent a fifty-five bucks.  Shouldn't it be really good? Shouldn't I be lying in bed searching for a cigarette?  Or, at a minimum, shouldn't I have heard one or two angels singing?  The bubbly was good, not great.  That makes me uneasy.

When I first began learning about wine, the following caveat was drilled into my head from a number of "experts":

Spending more money doesn't necessarily equate to better wine.  However, a notable exception is Champagne.  The relationship between price and quality is rock-solid.

The more Champagne I taste, the more I find the above statement to be baloney.  I love the bubbles, but I trust them less and less each day.

What do you think?

The price of Champagne is generally..

Create Free Polls

See results here.

Technorati Tags: champagne, poll, wine

Baths of the Rich & Famous

Austria's Thermenregion (Thermal Region) is situated just south of Vienna.  As the name suggests, this region is home to numerous natural spring baths.  At one time, the Thermenregion was the summer frolic spot for those with cash in Vienna's societé.  This area, once home to soggy rich folks, is also the birthplace of sparkling wine in Austria, not to mention the home to a mysterious red grape variety.  There is more history here than one can shake a bottle at...

• In 1770, the Earl of Fries (whom I picture looking something like Mayor McCheese) developed large vineyards in this area for the purpose of selling red wine to customers in Vienna

• In the 18th century, Emperor Joseph II ruled that most anyone could open wine taverns (called Heuriger in German).  A vibrant wine-tavern culture sprung up in the Thermenregion after this imperial decree

• Robert Schlumberger, director of Ruinart Champagne, yearned to produce bubbly in Austria.  Why? He fell in love with a Viennese woman, whose mother forbade her to move back to france with bubbly Bob.  Schlumberger settled into Bad Vöslau, a town in the Thermenregion, and began producing Champagne-method-made wine

• Blauer Portugieser is the 'bulk' red wine grape of the Thermenregion.  It's origins are murky.  Two wine industry people I spoke with in Austria indicated that a Graff (royal) was said to have brought this variety from somewhere in France.  However, neither source knows why it carries the "Portuguese" moniker.  Wine from this grape is best sampled in a Heuriger

• Two unique white wine varieites, Zierfandler (spicy, lively) and Rotgipfler (sort of Gewurz-like, slightly flabby) are grown here

Nectar Imperial Analysis

My highly scientific analysis of Moet & Chandon's Nectar Impèrial

(click to enlarge)
Still trying to work out some of the kinks in the sensors..

Technorati Tags: champagne, french wine, wine

Weekend Wine Picks

A mixed case full of weekend wine picks:

• Il Circo "La Funambola" Erbaluce di Caluso 2004 ($17)

• Guardian Peak SMG 2003 ($13)

• Château Tour des Gendres Cuvée des Conti 2004 ($15) [Happy Birthday to the Caveman!]

• Nigl Grüner Veltliner Kremser Freiheit 2004 ($15) [Happy Birthday to Lenn!]

• Weingut Eduard Hauth-Kerpen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett 2001 ($17)

• Lyeth Sonoma County Meritage 2002 ($16)

• Domaine de Lauroux Rouge 2003 (~$9)

• Vina Borgia Grenache 2004 ($5)

• Tryst Cabernet/Tampranillo/Zinfandel 2002 ($16)

• Old Plains "Power of One" Shiraz 2004 (~$30)

• Domaine Balland-Chapuis Coteaux du Giennois 2004 ($11)

• Huguet Gran Reserva Cava Brut Nature 2001 ($24)

Now go get some sun (but not too much).

Technorati Tags: white wine, red wine, sparkling wine, wine

Mauzac to our Ears

(Editor's note: This is the second in a series of posts by guest authors whose own blogs are under-appreciated/under-visited.  If you are new to wine blogging, or host a blog out in the remote reaches of wineblogistan, contact me with a post proposal, and we'll see if we can't deliver more winos to your site.)

Guest Author: Caryl of Château Rives-Blanques

Talk about challenging names and have-to-be-hand-sold wines ... what about a mauzac called 'Xaxa', then?

In fact, what about Mauzac period/full stop?

Mauzac is an old traditional grape variety of the Renaissance, which used to be widespread throughout the south of France and even featured in Antiquamareto's Livre de Raison  in the early 16th century -  but today exists in only two appellations (Limoux and Gaillac).

The one thing mauzac does really well is, it sparkles.  Some time around 1500 the Benedictines  in a monastery  in Limoux, close to Carcassonne, were blessed by a happy accident (or was it divine intervention?) and  found that out for themselves.  They went into business, and no wonder: at that time, a sparkling Blanquette (the original name for mauzac) was worth twice as much as a non-sparkling wine, so they were on to a good thing.  This all happened over 150 years before another Benedictine, a certain Dom Pérignon  passed by on his obligatory pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella, and probably had his first sip of their famous bubbles on the way.   (Am I implying he stole, or at best borrowed, the recipe - or in this case, méthode?  Well ... perhaps.  Besides, even Robert Parker says that Blanquette de Limoux is much, much older than champagne, so the story must be true.)

Steal This Article

Editor's note:  Steal this article!  Whether you publish a paper, magazine, blog or scribble on the bathroom wall; fresh (& free) content is always welcome, no?  Feel free to grab this article and use it to spice up your publication.  Do with it what you will - so long as you mention that the original comes from The Juice.  Now go forth, and copy & paste.

First in Bubbles

Picture this:  You’re a 16th century monk who is lucky enough to live in an abbey surrounded by vineyards.  Aside from an abundance of peace and quiet, you enjoy looking after your beloved bottles of fermenting wine in the subterranean cellar.  Spring has sprung and it’s time for you and your fellow monks to find out if that special miracle has occurred for a second straight year.  You and the brothers anxiously descend the stone stairs.  Being the nimblest monk, you reach the bottles first and carefully pick one up.  They’ve appeared again!  Hallelujah and praises be.  The tiny bubbles have returned.  The others offer prayers of thanks, while you perform a decidedly non-pious jig.  Reverence can be temporarily cast aside; this abbey is rocking with sparkling wine.

Snak Mix

Gather round. It's time to for a little free association (invented by Austrian, S. Freud, thank you).

Mixed nuts / Dive bar
Roasted nuts / Peanut w/legs, monocle and cane
Paprika nuts mix a la Tartine Gourmande / Champagne

Yes, you read that correctly. I like nuts & bubbly.

This recipe from La tartine gourmande is dead-easy and brings new meaning to the phrase, "fancy mixed nuts." I slightly modified the recipe by using smoked paprika and adding almonds to the mix.

The bubbly introduced to my fancy nuts was Nic Feuillatte's Brut Réserve Particulière ($29) - AKA 'Blue Label.'  This Champagne is a blend - heavy on the red grapes (40% Pinot Noir, 40% Pinot Meunier & 20% Chard).  While I was slightly underwhelmed with Nic's wine, it did possess a pleasant soda fountainesque combo of cherry, vanilla and cream scents.

Fortunately, Réserve Particulière serves up the trademark Champagne mouthfeel of zest & silk.  Add this to the nuts and your flavor party is on.  Bubbly amplifies the paprika's smoke and the richness of high-fat (but good fat) nuts.

If you want to give this nut recipe a spin, but are hesitant to drop three Hamiltons on Champagne, I suggest an inexpensive, surefire Cava like Segura Viudas Aria.  Now pass the nuts, please.

Tagged with: wine + champagne

New Music Tuesday: Jukebox 45's

I ran across this album on emusic and downloaded it immediately.  Jukebox 45's is a compilation of abstract hip-hop, bizarre 70s funk, acid rock and breakbeat by DJ Peanut Butter Wolf.  The oddest and most enjoyable track is "My 2600" an old school Atari game cartridge shout-out (!!) laid over smoove groovy funk by 'Captain Funkaho.' Have a listen: Download 13824243.m3u.  Preview all the tracks here.

This album puts me in the mood for some solid bubbly.  Groove to it with a Cava by Can Feixes (imported into the US by Classical Wines): Huguet Gran Reserva Cava Brut Nature 2001 ($24).  This wine is more complex than most non-Champagne bubbly.  It's also Sahara-desert-in-a-bottle dry ('Brut Nature' indicates no dosage was added).  Huguet Cava will literally get your juices flowing (at least in your mouth anyway) while you let this PB Wolf album seep into your head.

Groovy.

Bulles et Fromage

"Bulles et fromage."  Doesn't everything just look more sophisticated when written in French?  Bubbles and cheese; or more specifically, Champagne and creamy, melty cheese are one of my all time favorite high calorie guilty pleasures.  And when you're breaking through the fat stratosphere, why not combine four cheeses and throw in some Pancetta?  Oh what the hell; douse the concoction with some heavy cream, a few fresh herbs, some tomato sauce and corkscrew-shaped pasta (AKA Cavatappi).  The result is seriously good mac-and-cheese with Italian flair (Maccheroni Quattro Formaggi Villa D'Este - taken from this month's Gourmet)

Now, let's talk Les Bulles.

Jean Lallement et Fils Brut Champagne, NV (~$45-55)

• A blend of Pinot Noir (80%) and Chardonnay (20%) from snazzy Grand Cru vineyards near the Champagne town of Vezernay
• Very sultry in color - something of a copper-gold with dense medium-sized bubbles that leisurely work their way to the surface
• The nose tells me this is my kind of bubbly.  Scents of roasted nuts, biscuits, lemon zest and an aroma I can only describe as 'subtle sea-salt'
• In the mouth this bubbly is alternately rich & smooth and crisp & fresh.  Jean's sparkler is a prime example of why people go coo-coo for Champagne
• This is one of the few half C-note wines that I heartily recommend without reservation

To fully appreciate this bubbly, you might consider enrolling yourself in a single-evening liquid diet program.  However, Lallement Champagne will compliment, nay improve, most any entrée you throw at it.  Needless to say, my fancified mac-and-cheese was turned to pure Ambrosia with the help of this wonderbubbly.  Yes, it's that good.

P.S. Did I mention I originally bought this bubbly simply because I dug its cool green label?  Sometimes one falls backasswards into a great purchase.

Tagged with: wine  + french wine + champagne

Prosecco Mix-Ins: The Verdict

Recently, we talked a bit about Prosecco and took the mix-in suggestion to heart.  Last night I convened an expert Prosecco mix-in tasting panel armed with Casalnova Prosecco, fresh raspberries, POM mango pomegranate juice and fresh blood orange wedges.  It was a long, arduous process of sipping, sampling, discussion and judgement.  The panel emerged with a unanimous verdict:

"Medium dry Prosecco + one squeeze from blood orange wedge = Boo-Ya"

Try it now.  Thank me later.

The Skinny
Casalnova Prosecco, NV ($12-$14) [find it online]

• 100% Prosecco from Italy's Veneto; 11% alcohol
• Very pale straw in color with baby-sized bubbles
• Delicate scents of honeysuckle mated to hints of peach & pear
• Mostly-sorta-kinda dry, with a little lingering sweetness in the mouth.  This is one of those 'blank slate' Proseccos that is open to pre or post dinner mixing

*** (3 stars out of 5)

Check out a photo of our test bottle at Vino Voyeur.

Tagged with: wine +italian wine +sparkling wine +mixed drinks

Bubble Jones? Go Prosecco.

You're jonesing for something bubbly, but don't have the coin for Champagne.  What to do?  You've got options: A) drink a soda/pop, B) make one of those 6th grade science experiment-volcanoes with vinegar and baking soda (you watch the bubbles in lieu of drinking them), C) take your bad self to the wine shop and ask for bubbles.  Chances are you'll be presented with one or more of the following sparkling supplements: Sparkling wine, Cava, Prosecco.

Making your best scientific-looking face, you decide on Prosecco - because it sounds cool.  But what is Prosecco?  It's Italian sparkling wine.  Yeah, yeah; but what is Prosecco...really?

Prosecco, literally, is the name of a late ripening grape thought to have originated in northeastern Italy around a town called Prosecco - near Trieste.  Prosecco, generally, also refers to a style of bubbly made in Italy's Veneto.  Traditionally, Prosecco was lightly sparkling, slightly sweet and uncomplicated.  Like other European sparkling wine, Prosecco's creation was a bit of an accident.  Back in the day, Prosecco grapes were harvested late in the fall.  As the juice fermented, winter arrived an put the kabosh on fermentation - but not before the sugar eating yeasts had belched out a number of carbon dioxide bubbles.  Then as the wine cellar gradually warmed with the arrival of spring, fermentation started up once again, but without temperature control, this process went along in lurches and lunges (Think: the first time you tried to drive a car with manual transmission).  The end result was a rustic wine, with spritz , subtle scents of fruit & flowers and a little sweetness to go along with the Prosecco grape's characteristic high acidity.  It was simple sparkly stuff.

Then, in the late 1800's, along came the ominously-named 'tank method' for producing a whole helluva a lot of Prosecco at once.  Indeed, Prosecco-based bubbly became less variable, more predictably sparkly, and often, quite dry.  Nowadays, if you grab a bottle of Prosecco off the shelf, it could be really dry, sort of dry or slightly sweet.  Of course there are also Prosecco producers who attempt to Maserati-ify this wine and sell it for luxe prices.  I don't suppose there is anything wrong with that.  However, for me, Prosecco will always be the bubbly I break out on a Friday night, on a picnic, or to sip après lawn mowing.

I dig Maggie's Prosecco philosophy: "With Proseccos, you never know if they’ll be bone or off dry until you try. But the beauty is, if you don’t hit it off, you just add something else until you do.."  She indicates you can add all variety of juice, mixers and sugared cubes.  Great idea.  And even though it's mid-January, there aint nothing stopping you from throwing a little Prosecco mixing party tomorrow night.

Some Prosecco suggestions:

• Adami Prosecco, NV ($15)
• Mionetto Prosecco Legatura, NV ($13)
• Jeio Bisol Prosecco Brut, NV ($14)

Finally, the question becomes, What do you add to your Prosecco?  Drop some mix-in suggestions for those of us fixin' to experiment with the Pro-Sek-O.

Tagged with: wine +italian wine +sparkling wine

Shinglebacked!

The 'shrinking violet' Christian of Turn the Screw sinks his teeth into a new sparkling offering:

Shingleback Black Bubbles Sparkling Shiraz

Just keep in mind, we are in the midst of an Aussie wine glut, so all the marketing stops, including creative critters, are going to be trotted out.  Prepare to be bombarded by clerverly named & labeled wine that must be sold!

(FYI a Shingleback is a nifty-looking skink with a blue tongue)

Tagged with: wine +shingleback + australian wine

Death to Mr. M

I used a flat-head screwdriver to pry the lid off of his wood coffin. Bubble wrapped and nesting among hundreds of little polystyrene chips (you know, the annoying ones that stick to you and everything you touch), Mr. M laid there, lifeless. I unwrapped his dressing and inspected him from head to toe, then placed him back down to rest in his box, well-hidden in the back of my closet. He had a few more weeks until his big unveiling. He would be the hit of the surprise party, and he knew it.

The big day arrived soon enough. Luckily it was freezing outside, so I put Mr. M on the balcony to chill for the day. There was no way he’d fit in the fridge. By evening, the excitement was flowing through his veins, and I brought him in to rest in a massive ice bucket as the centerpiece of the table. When the party finally kicked-off and a toast was in order, we decided against beheading Mr. M with a saber, as (A) this is too cruel, and (B) I don’t own a saber. Instead, we unscrewed his cage and extracted his cork by hand. He sputtered at the neck for a few seconds, but then all was silent as we poured his insides into twenty-five flutes and drank him dry.

There was no prayer said for Mr. M the next morning. The only prayers were for water and ibuprofen. As for disposing of the body, I merely rinsed out his carcass and put him back into his tomb. He now lives near the wine chest to remind us of the good times we had. God bless his little twelve pound frame.

Does an empty Methuselah ("Mr. Methuselah" to you) really weigh twelve pounds? Just about. As Beau mentioned last week, I recently had some fun with one of these big bottles of Taittinger. Though I knew the volume of a Methuselah equals that of eight standard-sized bottles, the dork in me decided to have some fun with weights and measures (for those of you who shiver at the sight of math, you might want to turn away now):

Standard Bottle of Champagne (750mL)

• Weight of empty bottle = 1.9 lbs
• Weight of full bottle = 3.5 lbs
• Weight of juice = 1.6 lbs
• Height of bottle = 12 in
• Width of bottle = 3.5 in
• Length of cork = 1.5 in

Methuselah of Champagne (6L)

• Weight of empty bottle = 11.5 lbs (ouch!)
• Weight of full bottle = 24.5 lbs (double ouch!)
• Weight of juice = 13 lbs (about 8x the standard, which makes sense!)
• Height of bottle = 22.5 in
• Width of bottle = 6.5 in
• Length of cork = 2 in

--WG

Blogger Wine Picks

A brief jaunt around the wineblogosphere provides us with a cornucopia of recommended vino

Dr. Vino:  MontGras, Reserva Carmenere, Colchagua, 2001 $9.99 - "aromas of dark fruits, leather and spice leap out of the glass"

Vinography: NV Az. Vin. Il Colle "Cuvée 46° Parallelo" Prosecco, Conegliano, Italy $45 - "In the mouth it its gorgeously light and balanced, with excellent but not overpowering acidity"

Winewaves: Argyle Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2004 $22 - "Here is a delicate fruit-forward Oregon Pinot Noir with character and finesse, rather than power or concentration"

Lenndevours: Raphael 2004 Grand Cru White Table Wine $15 - "this is a wine made for the people and thankfully, fewer and fewer people want that style of over-manipulated chardonnay"

The Wine Cask Blog:  Covey Run Riesling 2004 $7.50 - "Rich grapefruit on the nose with vanilla tones and a floral softness"

The Caveman: 2004 "Deponcins" Francois Villard Condrieu $85 (CAN) - "this is Condrieu at it’s finest. It had a delicate yet remarkably complex nose of honey, peach, pear, flint and with just the right dose of fresh oak"

Cold weather bonus: The Wine Offensive challenges us to make our own damn hot chocolate (Maggie also includes a helpful diagram)

The 3 Party Amigos

Q: How can I put together a swank dinner party in two days or less?

A: Invite two Spaniards and one French citizen with a bubbly personality

The nice thing about wine is that it can easily class-up any party.  You just have to invite the right vine friends.  Even if you’re on a budget, you can still dazzle ‘em. 

Starters:
Charles de Fère Brut Tradition (sparkling Chardonnay) $10 paired with:

• Southwestern pumpkin soup (make the soup one day in advance if possible - you’ll get fuller, more complex flavors)
• Field green salad with cherry tomatoes and sliced gala apples (boysenberry-Anjou pear vinegar vinaigrette with sesame seeds)

The Main Event:
Finca Luzon Altos de Luzon 2001 (D.O. Jumilla; Monastrell [AKA Mourvèdre], Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo) $17 paired with:

• Stephen’s very easy & very tasty braised beef ribs over buttered egg noodles
• Warm, crusty bread for sponging up rib sauce

The Most Important Pairing - The Chef’s Portion
Caño Toro Tinta de Toro 2001 (D.O. Toro; Tempranillo [AKA Tinta de Toro] & Garnacha) $10:

• Used in the rib recipe
• A vital component for keeping the chef happy and kitchen running smoothly

Voila! Killer dinner party.

Los Bubblios

From the first moment I heard of the Gruet Winery, I was mightily intrigued.  How on earth did a Champagne family come to plant grapes in Truth or Consequence, New Mexico - 170 miles south of Albuquerque?  Is the wine any good?  Are these people simply loopy?

It seems that Mssr. Gruet, of Gruet et Fils Champagne (Bethon, France) decided to plant an experimental vineyard in New Mexico.  The Gruet family had traveled through the Southwestern US and met other European winemakers already successfully raising vines. Apparently, the land was cheap, and Papa Gruet thought, “Ehhhh.  Why not?”

In 1984, the Gruet family decided to make a go of it and planted Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes at 4,300 feet (1,310 meters for you metrically-inclined folks) in elevation.  So, yes, the grapes are in the arid, hot, Southwest.  But thanks to high elevation, the grapes don’t become raisins. - they get pleasantly plump.  Proof of this is in the bubbly (made, by the way, in the Traditional Method).  Let's take a sip....

Chambers Street Wine

Speaking of Chambers Street Wine...

I visited the shop on my last, soggy trip to NYC.  What I bought:

• Domaine Sainte-Anne Saint Gervais Côtes du Rhône Villages 2001 (imported by Polaner)
• Maria Casanovas Cava Brut Nature Pinot Noir (imported by Gustin)

Odd selections, no?  I've always wanted to try a St. Gervais.  My surname (Jarvis) is the anglicized version of Gervais.  I've made up this story in my head wherein I'm the long lost relative to a lonely vineyard owner in St. Gervais.  I meet him.  He rejoices in finding a relative and then offers me his guest house whenever I visit the Rhône valley - thus making travel to France much more affordable.  Ah, wine geek fantasies.

As for the Spanish sparkling Pinot; I've always wanted to try a Pinot Noir-based Cava.  Though, now I wish I would have also purchased some Vin Jaune (If you haven't noticed, I like really odd wine).

Sadly, I saw no Wine Chicks in the store; only wine dudes.

WANTED

Three suspect wines being sought by some kooky wine shop customers. Suspects are likely 750ml each. Names and prices are unknown. If you have any information regarding these suspects, please contact WineGoddess immediately at Basic Juice Headquarters.

Suspect #1: Dry Moscato d’Asti

Background: A young guy strolls in looking for a Moscato d’Asti that isn’t sweet. He says he had one in a restaurant. “Are you sure it wasn’t even slightly sweet?” I ask, thinking perhaps the delicacy of the moscato had fooled his palate. He insists repeatedly that the wine was bone dry. I tell him I’ve never heard of a dry Moscato d’Asti, and I sell him the only moscato we have, fully expecting that he’ll bring it back any day now to complain it’s too sweet.

Suspect #2: Sabatini Cabernet

Background: A frantic woman comes in looking for Sabatini Cabernet. She says it’s about $15 and it just got a good review by Wine Spectator. “Could you be thinking of Sebastiani?” I ask as I point to the Sebastiani Cabernet with it’s 90-point “Smart Buy” shelf talker staring us in the face. Nope, she swears it’s called Sabatini. Since I don’t have her wine, she asks me for something similar. I say it’s hard to recommend something similar when I have no idea what it is or where it’s from. I tell her the Sebastiani is very good, but she storms off in frustration.

Suspect #3: Rioja not from Rioja

Background: An older gentleman walks in looking for a Rioja that he had at a friend’s house. I show him the Spanish section but he says the wine wasn’t Spanish. I try to explain to him that Rioja is a region of Spain, but he doesn’t like this. I ask him if it could’ve been a wine from La Rioja, Argentina, but he says it wasn’t Argentine because he hates Argentine wines. Since I’ve learned to pick my battles, I shrug my shoulders and walk away.

Bubbly + Food = Wow

Last night I taught the bubbly class.  It started off with a brave soul asking the question about NV - i.e. What does NV mean?  To make the point that there are no stupid questions, just stupid teachers, I related my own NV-story.

Bubbly sampled:

• Paul Cheneau Art Series Brut Cava, NV ($9)
• Mionetto Prosecco Legatura, NV ($13)
• Argyle Oregon Brut Sparkling Wine '99 ($20)
• Beaumont des Crayeres Grand Prestige Brut Champagne NV ($33)
• Marenco 'Pineto' Brachetto d’Aqui, 2003 ($16)

Flavors paired with bubbly:

got Flare?

If you ever worked as a server in a TGI-like restaurant, you are likely familiar with the concept of flare.  I prefer sipping flare rather than wearing it.  And there's nothing like a little flare from Spain's central coast (D.O. Valencia).  This Flare is a bubbly Moscatel made in the Charmat (AKA Tank/Bulk) Method.

The Skinny
Cheste Flare Epumoso de Moscatel, NV ($7-$10)

• Made from the Moscatel (Moscato in Italy; Muscat in France) grape
• Light gold in color with small, steady bubble-beads
• Like many Muscat wines, the scent reminds me of a bowl of fresh grapes with a couple of peaches thrown in
• Semi-sweet/off-dry in the mouth, but with enough crispness to escape the 'syrupy zone.'  A pleasant aperitif wine

*** (3 stars out of 5)

The perfect happy-hour sip.  This Moscatel would also be fine with fresh fruit or a slice of peach pie

Los Bubblios: Gruet Sparkling Wine

From the first moment I heard of the Gruet Winery, I was mightily intrigued.  How on earth did a Champagne family come to plant grapes in Truth or Consequence, New Mexico - 170 miles south of Albuquerque?  Is the wine any good?  Are these people simply loopy?

It seems that Mssr. Gruet, of Gruet et Fils Champagne (Bethon, France) decided to plant an experimental vineyard in New Mexico.  The Gruet family had traveled through the Southwestern US and met other European winemakers already successfully raising vines.  Apparently, the land was cheap, and Papa Gruet thought, “Ehhhh.  Why not?”

In 1984, the Gruet family decided to make a go of it and planted Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes at 4,300 feet (1,310 meters for you metrically-inclined folks) in elevation.  So, yes, the grapes are in the arid, hot, Southwest.  But thanks to high elevation, the grapes don’t become raisins. - they get pleasantly plump.  Proof of this is in the bubbly (made, by the way, in the Traditional Method).  Let's take a sip....

WBW Memories

My Friend Jens of the C.wizzle-grizzle has a T+one week WBW#11 post.  And I thought, "Why not share it with the world?"  You can read it here or at CWG.

Marco Negri, Moscato D'Asti DOGC 2004 ($16) -- Italy, bottled by Negri SS Costigliole D'Asti. 5.5% alcohol. Some beers have more kick than this effervescent aperitif. I am a little clueless on this one, but I am making a stab at what I think it "off dry", that is not dry or sweet, but a little sweet I guess. Keep the guests away from this one as they will quickly finish this bottle off in a matter of minutes if left unattended.

This stuff could be habit forming! It is not overly sweet, just slightly so. I can see myself enjoying a pasta lunch on the stone escarpment in Portofino by the blue-green Mediterranean while downing several glassses of this thirst quenching, refreshing wine. Waiter, check please, my yacht is double parked at the marina. Now I just need to work on that fashion look of my blazer thrown over my shoulders! Ciao Bella!

Fine Wine Since 1542, or 1875; Whatever

With new world wineries and vineyards, it often seems as if bigger is better.  Slide on over to the bubbly houses of France, Spain, and Italy, and you find that older apparently is better.

Take Bisol of Italy for example.  You visit this prosecco maker's website and the first thing you notice is:

"Bisol, finest prosecco of Valdobbiadene since 1542"

However, upon reading the not-so-fine print about the Bisol family's bubbly history, you notice this:

"..he began selling his wines on a limited scale (1875).."

Minor detail.  What's 300+ years?  Perhaps the family had been making wine for 300 years and then decided in the late 1800s to start selling its vino.  In any event, Bisol's modern day Prosecco, is actually pretty good stuff.

recycledJuice: Deconstructing the Wine Review

These original posts, much like the Vinho Verde post, were probably read by two people (including me).  Now that there are a few more visitors here, I thought recycling this series might be a good idea.  Like a bad Star Wars film, let's begin with Episode 3 first...  If you wish to read Eps 1 & 3, click here & here.

Deconstructing the Wine Review - Part 3

If you are familiar with major wine magazines such as Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast or Decanter, you have undoubtedly read hundreds of wine reviews. After reading say 10 or so reviews, it becomes crystal clear that there is a high level of redundancy (and conformity) in a typical wine review.

For example, do phrases like this ring a bell?

Textured and framed
Endless tiers of fruit flavor
Cherry-berry-mocha fruit
Plump Cherry and blackberry flavors
Toasty oak
etc. etc. etc....

I was thinking that wine critics would get more response if the review format were turned on its head. Take this review (I originally wrote it for www.basicjuice.com):

Original review:  Martini & Rossi Asti, non-vintage ($12) - A good, simple, unassuming wine. Asti is very pale gold in color with active bubbles. It has a scent that can best be described as, “grapey.” There are also aromas of canned peach and apricot. While Asti is sweet, it is balanced by distinct crispness that lasts through the finish. The flavor confirms everything detected by the nose with a creamy sensation in the mouth to boot. Asti is fine as an aperitif and it works very well with Sunday brunch – particularly egg dishes

Rewritten using that Old School Rhymin':

F*** tha Kristal! / I need bubbly for my posse at a price that’s minimal
I’m cynical /  I be sniffin’ / Takin a whiffin’/ My nose twitchin’ like a whacked out kitten.
This glass aint frontin’ / Sweet peach, apricot ‘n grapes sure be sayin’ somthin’.
Asti is dope / It’s creamy / Yeah boy / Feelin’ oh so dreamy. / Sweet but not heavy / Ya’ll ready?
Gimme eggs.  Gimme bread.  Gimme fruit. / Man, this s*** is mad-tasty to boot.

Word.

Seeking Bubbly Bliss

I have a 'relati