The UnTourist

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

L’Ecole No. 41 2002 Columbia Valley Barrel Fermented Semillon. The colour was a nice pale gold and the nose was crisp, sweet, and somewhat buttery. The mouth starts light and builds with a mix of crisp and sweet fruit and come vine, and buttery notes along the side on the finish.

House of Nobilio 2003 Marlborough Pinot Gris. This entry from New Zealand has a clear pale gold colour and crisp nose of fruit, with apple predominating. The mouth feel is solid and strong with sweet apple.

Fortius Tempranillo 1998 Navarro D.O. This Spanish wine has a dark garnet colour and a nose filled with chocolate and jam, and just a hint of leather. The mouthfeel is different, slightly bitter at the start but moving into red fruit. Fair.

Speri Valpolicella 2001. This Italian entry is a light garnet colour and a nose of musty leather. The mouthfeel is fair, with fruit and leather predominating, and a nice finish.

Monsanto Chianti Classico 1999. The nice ruby colour leads to a fair nose and a solid, tangy mouthfeel. Red fruit comes under, along with a nice finish.

Bodegas Monticillo 2002 White Wine. A delightfully very pale yellow colour more reminiscent of flowers than anything else leads to a nice nose that is light and crisp, full of green grape, pear, and hints of tropical fruits and minerals. The mouthfeel is fair, at best, the taste of the fruit being diluted; yet, past the initial taste one can find some crispness and a bit of sweet/tart going on the sides. While lacking in body, this would make a very good hot weather wine simply to enjoy outside on a summer day.

Osborne Solaz. This wine is 80 percent Tempranillo and 20 percent Cabernet Sauvignon and has a nice red/purple colour leading to a nose crisp with fruit, chocolate, and spice. The mouthfeel is fair, with tastes of ripe plum and chocolate predominating with hints of spice following. The finish is okay.

Bodegas Monticillo Crianza 1998. This 100 percent Tempranillo wine has a slightly odd red/brown colour and a fair – but light – nose of leather with hints of spice. The mouthfeel is stronger than the nose, and filled with fruit and berries, spice, and a nice hint of mocha.

Bodegas Monticillo Reserva 1998. The colour is dark garnet and the nose is full of chocolate and leather, with spice under. The fair mouth has a slight tart and crisp texture to it, and rich with plums and other red fruits, along with subtle notes of chocolate and spice. Not bad.

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

Once again, Pauli’s provided an interesting afternoon with a selection of five wines. While a bit higher than normal in price, the tasting was enjoyable and provided a view of some smaller and interesting estates.

First up was a Victor Hugo 2002 Rose, made from Syrah grapes. No, not the writer, but interesting all the same. The colour was garnet and the nose was both sweet and tart. The mouth was tart, giving way to fruit and grape skins. A very different rose, but with some interesting possibilities.

Next up was a Ruston Sauvignon Blanc 2002 from Napa Valley. The colour was a clear pale straw, with a sharp nose of vine with spice that extended out into fruitiness. The mouth was nice, with a mixture of sweet with fruit and tartness. This led into some interesting tropical fruit flavors and a nice finish. A bit different, but it would go very well with a number of dishes.

The next offering was Victor Hugo 2001 Zinfandel. The ruby red colour leads to a nose of tobacco and spice, while the mouthfeel is surprisingly mellow. Tobacco is followed by fruit, spice, and a nice and slightly sweet finish.

The fourth offering of the day was Victor Hugo 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon. Again, a ruby red colour with a nice nose of tobacco over leather, what I consider a nice barn smell, with some mineral under. The mouthfeel was fair, lighter than anticipated from the nose, tobacco giving way to fruit and an okay finish.

The final wine of the day was Victor Hugo Oppulence, 1999, and it was an interesting treat. The colour is a solid ruby with an equally solid nose of tobacco and spice. The mouthfeel was fair, starting with tobacco with dark chocolate leading to spice notes and a nice finish. The flavors were interesting, and the result of the blending of 40 percent cabernet franc, 33 percent merlot, 20 percent cabernet sauvignon, and 7 percent petite verdot.

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

Yesterday’s wine tasting at Pauli’s was a delight. My favorite wine pusher was there and he usually brings a treat or treats along with information on the wines for me. He did not let me down. When Spain is mentioned, there is an automatic assumption that the wines will be red, yet that country produces some very good white wines as well, such as those from the Rueda region (Old Castile-Leon). I have had one such before (Basa) and yesterday got to try two new ones.

The first wine of the day was Montesol Rueda Classico 2002. This is a 50/50 blend of Verdejo and Viura grapes. The colour is a nice pale straw, and the nose is rich with citrus and fruit, with just a bare hint of honeysuckle. The mouthfeel was nice, crisp with green fruit and citrus, with a hint of honey towards the side. The finish was pleasant, and it would make a good warm weather wine and one for lighter fare.

The second wine of the day was Pasil Pie Franco Rueda Superior White 2003, and the name is not wrong. The wine is 100 percent Verdejo grapes, something I have not had before. The colour is again a pale straw, but the nose is strong and filled with grapefruit and citrus with a hint of flowers all over fruit in the base. The mouthfeel is solid, with grapefruit and citrus again dominating at the start, but with fruit under with hints of floral notes on the side. The finish is very nice, and this full-bodied full-flavor wine can hold its own with most food and would be excellent even with a spicy paella.

The next wine was a red, Roblemar Jumilla 2001. It is a 50/50 blend of Tempranillo and Monastrell grapes. The colour is a deep ruby red and the strong rich nose is filled with chocolate, leather, and coffee. The mouthfeel is nice, though not as strong as the nose, and filled with chocolate, leather, spice, and tobacco in a complex delight. The finish is dry, and pleasant.

The next wine was Valdegracia Rebera del Guadiana 1998, and is 100 percent Tempranilo. The colour is a nice ruby red, and the nose is rich and earthy with tobacoo and toast with notes of vanilla on swirling. The mouth starts light to medium, and builds to a full, smooth pleasure filled with tobacco and spices. The flavors combine for a delightful taste with a good finish.

The final wine was Senorio del Aguila Carinena 1994 Reserva, and is a blend of Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. The deep ruby colour is followed by a sharp nose of sherry, spice, and caramel over deeply buried fruit. The mouthfeel is nice with spice and sweet notes with fruit under. The finish is good, with the sherry once again providing notes at the finish.

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

The first wine was Wente Monterey Arroxo Seco 2003 Reisling. The colour is a clear pale gold with a nice nose of grape, apple, and mineral: sweet. The mouthfeel is nice, sweet going to tart with green fruit and a slight bite of wood and vine. Finishes sweet on the side.

The second wine of the day was Le Rime 2003 Banfi Chardonnay Pinot Grigo. The colour was a very pale straw, with a slightly sparm nose of pear and floral notes with a hint of wood. The mouthfeel starts sharp with wood and fruit buried under. The bitter start fades to a slight sweetness on finish. Interesting.

The third wine was Bogle 2002 Sauvignon Blanc. The colour is almost clear with just a faint straw colour. The nose is sharp and slightly musty with apple under. The mouthfeel is bitter going to tart. There are strong citrus notes, and it does go slightly sweet on finish, but not nearly enough as it is still quite bitter, causing one’s mouth pucker like sucking on a sour lemon. One of the worst things I have drunk in years.

The fourth wine was Planeta La Segretta Blanco 2003 from Sicily. The colour is a nice gold colour with a nose of grape and honey with hints of flowers. The mouth starts bitter/tart start woody with fruit and sweet coming out on the finish.

The fifth wine of the day was Red Truck 2002 California Red Table Wine. It has a nice clear garnet colour and a nice full nose of leather with chocolate, plums, and red fruit coming out over time. The mouthfeel is good with leather and chocolate with fruit and spice emerging on sides on finish. The overall finish is fair.

The final wine of the day was Planeta La Segreta 2003 Rossa. The colour is a clear ruby, with a nose of old leather and tobacco. The mouthfeel is medium with leather and spice with a faint fruit coming out. The finish is pleasant.

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

I decided on a more literal food for though item for today: how to taste wine. The notes I post most Sundays are my interpretations, and some have asked how to do a proper wine tasting. So, I thought I would share my thoughts on the matter.

I was very fortunate to do a number of very educational tastings at The Wine Bank in San Diego a few years ago. At those tastings one can learn how to taste, what to look for, and try a variety of interesting wines. To truly appreciate the whole, consider the components

First, look at the colour and the clarity. While there are some wines that should not be clear, the majority of what you are going to deal with every day should be clear. It used to be that clarity was a good indicator that the vintner was doing things right, while cloudy, murky, or wines with particles floating in it indicated that corners may have been cut and conditions during making and aging were less than ideal. This could indicate a bad wine, or it could indicate something that might make you blind. Today, it most likely means that vintner has done things right, including having a good knowledge of filtering/cold filtering.

The colour should indicate something about the wine. Very pale, almost clear wines for example, can indicate both a light wine and one that is delicate or has a single strong component. The richer the colour, the more robust it is likely to be. Ports, for example, are clear yet so rich in colour as to be very dark. None of this is an absolute indicator, but it serves as a guide. If you get a Chardonnay, for example, that is a very dark colour you may want to proceed with caution.

Once you have examined the colour and clarity, smell the wine. Take a whiff as it is just as it was poured into the glass. What smell or smells first hit your nose? What follows? Are there small smells, or notes, that show up later? Usually, this first sniff is dominated by one particular odor, but other notes can still emerge.

Now, swirl the wine in the glass. Smell it as you swirl, and then once you stop. How has the scent changed? Have new scents emerged? If not, the odds are it is not going to be a great glass of wine. The scent should be complex, a symphony if you will.

Appreciate it as a whole, but take it apart too. Do you smell fruit? If so, what types of fruit? You can smell a variety of apples, grapes, berries (blueberry, raspberry, blackberry, etc.), plums, pears, lemons, limes, grapefruit, and more. You can smell earth and minerals, tobacco, chocolate, jams, flowers, and vines. When you smell these odors, try to narrow them down a bit to to identify the specifics, such as Granny Smith apples, dark chocolate, mission figs, etc. When people talk of tobacco they rarely mean as in a cigarette – they mean a tobacco barn or something similar. To get a better understanding of this flavor, find a tobacco barn or get with a good cigar store that can let you smell the major types of tobacco. Look for spices such as white pepper, black pepper, red pepper, cinnamon, cassis, cardamom, cloves, nutmegs, basil, dill, and other common spices and herbs. Look for all the elements.

Now, taste the wine. The human tongue is an amazing thing, and an extremely sensitive and sophisticated sensor. As the wine enters your mouth, look at how it feels and tastes at the tip of the tongue, the body, and along the sides. How does it feel in your mouth: full, so-so, or weak. How it “fills” your mouth speaks volumes to a wine.

Repeat a similar process as with smelling: break it down to the components. Draw out the individual flavors and look at how they are put together. Often, flavors can differ from the scent, so seek out those difference and appreciate them. For example, a white wine may have a buttery taste that does not appear in the nose (smell), or a red wine may have spices that show up at different times and different parts of the tongue.

Run some air through the wine to see what new flavors come out. This can be done with tact, but it is crucial to releasing more flavors and things that might be hidden.

Now, consider it as a whole flavor like a meal. Have all the flavors come together? Has it lived up to the nose and colour? Do the different parts complement each other in a positive way?

Finally, how does it finish? Does it leave a bitter taste in the mouth? Sweet? Cloyingly sweet? Sour? Or does it provide a nice finish that fades slowly out? Do any new flavors or concepts show up on the finish? How does it taste in your mouth a minute or three after you swallow?

In a truly good wine, everything should now come together as a whole. The scent, the taste, the mouthfeel, and even the colour should combine to produce a symphony within the mouth.

As a final thought, consider that much of life can be treated as a glass of wine. If we take the time to appreciate all the individual parts, the whole can be appreciate anew.

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

The first wine was Hinman Vineyards 2002 Oregon Riesling. It has a clear straw colour and a crisp sweet nose of vine and flowers over green apple. The mouthfeel is nice, sweet but not overly sweet with flavors of green apple and grapes, with a following note of honeysuckle nectar and a nice finish.

The second wine was Hinman Vineyards 2001 Oregon Pinot Gris. It has a clear/straw pale colour and a nose that is light yet sharp with fruit when it does come out. The mouthfeel is medium and nicely balanced with grape and green fruit, and a sharp finish with hints of spice and mineral.

The third wine was Cooper Mountain Vineyards 1999 Willamette Valley Estate Bottled Oregon Chardonnay. The colour is a very pale gold and the nose is different: earthy in a way reminiscent of beef stew, followed by wood. The mouthfeel is full with a dry start of earth and mineral over fruit, with a faint vine/wood taste coming out. It has a pleasant finish that is slightly sweet but crisp.

The fourth wine was Rabbit Ridge 2003 Paso Robles Rabbit Rose. The colour was a light raspberry red with a nose of sweet red fruit, reminiscent of a snow cone. The mouthfeel was sharp and sweet, with medium mineral over raspberry and red berries, with some spice and white pepper showing up on the finish.

The final wine was Rabbit Ridge 2001 Paso Robles Brunello Clone Sangiovese. It has a celar deep cherry red colour and a nice nose of leather with a hint of spice. The mouthfeel was medium to medium-light and filled with leather, chocolate, and red fruit under mineral, with spice on the sides at the finish.

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

One of the most frequent questions that any wine person gets asked is, What wine should I serve with XXXX? A frequent disappointment are wines touted as being developed to complement XXXX.

I am not the best person to ask about what food with what wine, simply because I don’t believe in the so-called rules. Given the lack of flavor in most mass-produced meats, what you really are looking for are wines that will go with the spices and flavors that are added. This holds true to a certain extent even with good meats. Before I can even think of answering, I need to know the type and quality of meat, how it is to be prepared, spices, etc. With that knowledge, I may select a white wine to go with beef, or a new port to go with fish.

Given this, I was a bit intrigued by the announcement of the wine tasting at Pauli’s this week, because the wines were all developed specifically to go with wild game. A bit different, to say the least, but interesting. The Wild Game blends came about as a form of joint venture between Mossy Oak, the camouflage people and River Wild Winery. I was very pleasantly surprised yesterday by the products.

We started with Trout Blend, a mixture of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Viosnier. It had a nice straw colour that went well with a crisp nose of vine and wood misxed with dry green fruit. The crispness continued with the mouthfeel filled with pear, apple, and hints of wood and spice. The finish was quite pleasant, and it is a good warm weather white.

Next up was the waterfoul blend, made from Syrah, Grenache, and Mouvedre. The colour was purple-red, and the nice nose was filled with leather and plums, with hints of spice. The mouthfeel was good, with a dry start that fills with fruit and leather. There was a slight sweetness on the sides with the finish, and it was not a heavy wine despite the richness.

Turkey blend was next, made from Zinfandel, Grenache, and Petit Syrah. The medium-red colour was rich, and the nose quite good being filled with leather and spice. The mouthfeel was good, filled with spice and fruit over leather, and the finish crisp with a slight bitterness.

The final wine was Venison Blend, made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. A nice purple colour leads to a good nose of tobacco and leather with hints of chocolate and fruit. The mouthfeel was rich with ripe red fruit and chocolate, with spices and leather under. A delightfully complex wine.

My one regret was not being able to try the wines with appropriate foods. While I did try some with some of the snackage set out by Pauli’s, the result though good simply made me long even more for the real thing. These wines are quite good on their own, but I also think that they will go well with appropriate foods. I will also admit to being taken with the Trout, Waterfoul, and Venison, and particularly taken with the Venison.

The Saturday afternoon wine tasting at Pauli’s was fun, as always, even though nothing jumped out at me as a “have to take home” wine. The selection yesterday featured Peter Lehman wines from Australia.

We started with Eden Valley 2002 Reisling, which had a very pale straw colour and a nice nose filled with vine and sharp fruit. The mouthfeel was nice, dry, and filled with pear and green fruit that gave way to wood on the finish.

Next up was Clancy’s 2002 Red, a Bordeaux-style blend of 54% Shiraz, 29% Cabernet Saugvignon, 12% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc. The nose was very nice, filled with plums, rich red fruit, chocolate, and a hint of spice. The mouthfeel, however, was medium with a slight bitterness, some fruit, and a small bit of unsweetened chocolate. It is a shame that everything went into the nose, for if it had lived up to the nose this would be a very good wine.

Following that was a 2001 Barossa Shiraz. The nose was earthy with leather, a bit different from the typical Shiraz. The mouth was nice and full, filled with old leather with hints of fruit under, and a suggestion of chocolate on the finish. Not your typical Shiraz on many levels.

The final red wine was a 2001 Barossa Cabernet Sauvignon. The nose was quite nice, filled with leather and berries. The mouthfeel was fair, with leather slowly giving way to fruit and a fair finish.

The final wine of the day was a dessert wine, a 2001 Botrytis Semillon. The strong gold colour led to a nose of hay and flowers. The mouthfeel starts sharp, then brings forth sweet flowers and fruit on a fair finish. The floral notes mean that you should pick your dessert with care, to avoid any clash.

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

The tasting started with an offering from MacMurray Ranch, which was founded by actor Fred MacMurray of My Three Sons fame. His daughter has taken over the ranch and they concentrate on two varieties: Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir. They have two versions of the latter, apparently, and one of the former. What we sampled was MacMurray Ranch Russian River Valley Pinot Gris 2002. While my taste was still a bit off from a late lunch, I enjoyed this white wine. It had a very pale straw color, almost clear in certain light, which complemented the nice nose filled with hay, green fruit, and a hint of citrus. The mouthfeel was good with lots of fruit: pear, green apple, and with hint of grapefruit and citrus towards the finish. It was not too sweet, not too tart, with what may have been some wood on the finish. Overall, a refreshing white and a good start to the tasting.

The second wine we tried was MacMurray Ranch 2002 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. Good colour, and a medium-light nose of leather, tobacco, and bramble. The mouthfeel was light, and ran from a sweet start to a tart finish, with tastes of plums and red fruit, and some nice leather on the finish.

Our third wine was Frei Brothers Reserve Dry Creek Valley Merlot 2002. It had a good colour and a medium nose that was sharp, but solid with fruit and leather. The mouthfeel was good and filled with red berries, fruit, and a delightful amount of spice, especially cinnamon. While a little light, it was not bad and well worth a try.

The fourth wine was atypical, and very different. The best I can describe it was barn. Not a nice clean barn filled with warm scents of clean leather and fresh hay, but an old barn not well maintained. This is the best description/analogy I have for the Marcelina 1999 Napa Valley Merlot. The wine buyer at Pauli’s likes it, but admits that it will not fit most palates. The nose is very musty, and not in a nice way. The sharp mouthfeel has some fruit in it, but is very earthy. The wine buyer described tasting tar in it, and I would revert back to my barn description and something else. If you have the chance to taste it, do so, as it is atypical and probably a good thing to try for the experience. I do not, however, recommend you buy a bottle just to taste it as I cannot recommend it.

The final wine, however, was also atypical and a treat. The wine buyer termed it “eccentric” and I like that descriptor because it is delightfully different. Wynn’s Coonawarra Estate Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon has a good deep purple red colour that is somewhat opaque. The nose is quite nice, and filled with leather and tobacco with fruit under. The mouthfeel is good and solid, and filled with leather and tobacco, with sweet red berries on the side at the finish. This is not a typical cabernet at all, and to my mind combines the best of Pinot Noir, Syrah/Shiraz, and Merlot with the complexity of a good Cabernet. The result is something very different, but very good. I would love to get a case or two of this wine to enjoy over the next five years, to see how it ages for I have the feeling this will either age very well, or reach its peak within two years. If you do get the chance to try it, I recommend you do so.

This is a repost from a wine tasting at Pauli’s in Huntsville/Madison, AL. There will be a series of these to go up, along with notes on individual wines.

Well, when you have so many fine wine tastings, like the outstanding South African tasting a couple of weeks ago, it is easy to get spoiled. So, it is not surprising that I ended up a little disappointed yesterday. The wine tasting consisted of five unrelated wines, and I regret to say I found them all to be unremarkable.

We started with a 2000 Chablis from Roland Lavantureux. The nose was light yet sharp with scents of hay and light fruit. The medium mouth was sharp and dry strong mineral, slight wood, and citrus under on the finish. The result was not pleasing, and the only thing I could think of for it was to pear it with something extremely sweet.

The second wine, Castle Rock 2002 Napa Valley Sauvigon Blanc, made up for it a bit. It had a nice nose of pineapple and tropical fruit, followed by a medium mouth that was slighty crisp but with subdued flavors of fruit and mineral. If it had lived up to its nose, it would have been a very good wine.

The third wine was Jewel 2002 Viognier from California. The rich nose was filled with red delicous apple and bosc pear, and the medium to full mouthfeel was crisp and sweet with fruit. A nice finish. While sweeter than my normal like, it would pair well with good white cheeses.

The fourth wine was Qupe 2002 Syrah. It had a nice nose of leather and chocolate with fruit under. The tart mouthfeel revealed fruit – and a bitter finish. This was another wine that if it had lived up to its nose, it would have been very good. As it is, I do not recommend it.

The final wine of the tasting was Napanook 2000. The nose held leather and fruit, and the medium mouthfeel also contained leather and fruit. The finish, however, was not good.

The best wine of the day was not a part of the official tasting, but was offered to me when I arrived a bit early. It had been opened the previous day, and it had held up very well. I was quite pleased with the Mason Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2002. It has a very nice nose of citrus and fruit, and a medium mouthfeel with flavors of citrus and green fruit with a slight crisp finish. This is not a bad summer day wine, and would pair well with fruit and cheese on a hot afternoon.

One thing to keep in mind for wines is that they are not just for drinking. For example, the Jewel above would be excellent for poaching a firm white fish or even some salmon. Take a covered pot, or some aluminum foil to make a container, and place the fish within. Season, and consider using some fresh dill or other herbs appropriate to the fish. Pour in some of the wine, seal, and cook.

Another thing to keep in mind at a tasting, is if you consistently get a reading – such as a mineral note to the nose – no matter the type of wine, it may be the glass. Even minute traces of soap or chemical can throw things off, and if you have hard water the mineral notes you get may be from said local water when used to wash and rinse. Just a thought to keep in mind.