musings from vermont

vin de pissenlit. it is bottled and has cleared. it does still have a sharp edge but that is softening. some will go for the pig roast but i think there will be several bottles just sitting for about a year. i will put together some "tasting notes" just before its coming out celebration on the fourth of july.

wines of the long weekend. this was a disappointing topic until last night. the restaurant had a substantial list but most of the options were not interesting. i fell back on a favorite they had, and of which we have a couple cases in the cellar- COUDOULET de BEAUCASTEL 2007. first, the mark-up was not outrageous. the wine was dark and had scents of tar, smoke, and red fruit. the taste was red cherries and smoked meat, tannins were soft. the finish was full. this is a very nice wine and i was happy to see it as an option on the wine list. it was not as expensive or as marked-up as the CdP's on the list, and was certainly more reliable than the red burgundies. i strongly recommend this wine (and it comes at a retail price close to the $25 target of this blog).

on another note, one of the prominent wine publications just out had a very nice article on rose wines. not overly sweet white something or others, rose wines fermented dry. they pointed out that in france, rose wines are the only wines increasing in sales. the 2009's from provence should be excellent because the year was so good. unfortunately, in our area of pennsylvania the wine shops have had minimal supplies and severely limited variety. these are summer wines and typically are designed to be drunk young, shouldn't there be some available?

a final comment on rose, one which was not mentioned in the publication is the exact one i am most looking forward to tasting. last fall we had the good opportunity to visit jean marc at domaine rouge bleu shortly after his rose had gone into the tank and we tasted it. the flavors remain in my mind and i am excited to try the finished product this fall. it is a shame we cannot get this wine or wines from this producer in pennsylvania.

off the scale

sometimes opportunities arise in curious ways. yesterday as part of a meet, greet, and fete of departure a colleague was given and opened a spectacular old wine. the tasting notes from chateau mouton rothschild say it all. there is no doubt that this was an old wine just seeing its brick color, but the nose was fresh and the tastes had evolved and matured. tasting an old wine like this keeps one's perspective in balance as most of us only rarely get to taste wines such as this one and we more often are drinking younger, fruit forward wines. this was a special opportunity which i greatly appreciated. thank you rf.



1978
The wine has the brickish colour one would expect, an attractive red-orange.
The nose still displays plenty of fruit as aromas of blackberry, bilberry and blackcurrant liqueur meld with more complex oaky notes of caramel, tobacco and spice.
On the palate, very smooth tannins combine in a refined and elegant structure with lovely notes of pepper, kirsch, leather and humus.
The pleasantly long finish has all the character of a wine that has aged well, entirely in keeping with the vintage.

About the artist for 1978 - JEAN-PAUL RIOPELLE
Montreal-born Jean-Paul Riopelle (1923-) and his fellow-painter P.E. Borduas founded the "Automatisme" group to challenge the academic style then dominant in Canada with their 1948 manifesto Refus Global. Working in Paris, New York and Canada, Riopelle belongs to Lyrical Abstraction: inspired by the vital force of nature, his thickly-painted, highly-coloured work expresses an initial violence, underscored by the use of spatulas and palette-knives, contained by his geometrical composition.

For the 1978 Mouton Rothschild label, Riopelle prepared two designs: it was impossible to choose between them, and each was therefore used for half the vintage.

dinner party

so, the wines for this are not readily available but i think this merits a post because it demonstrates what can happen with well chosen wines.

amuse bouche:
seared pepper crusted ahi tuna on herb rubbed cheese

plat/entree:
"french london broil" (flat iron steak) marinated in red wine, herbs, and olive oil with steamed snap peas and rutabaga sauteed with shallots

salade;
herbs with garlic, onion, red peppers and sausage dressed with balsamic and olive oil

cheese:
brie baked with walnuts and drizzled with honey

dessert:
home-made lime tart with raspberries and blue berries

the wines:
ledson 2006 old vine zinfandel
ledson 2007 ancient vine zinfandel
frank family 2006 "winston hill" (rutherford red, named for the dog).

this was an outstanding line-up and it all paired well. i have become convinced that zinfandel is the truly american red wine and really expresses our tastes- lots of fruit with a great nose, cherry fruit balanced with enough alcohol to off-set the fruit forward nature of the younger wines and tannins, and a long finish. that said, winston hill is not a zin but is a favorite. special wines for a special meal. i have all of these in my cellar. they are not easy to obtain in pennsy, but if you see them they are well worth it for special occasions.

another 2007 southern rhone

so, from those photos everyone gets the idea of this producer's domaine. but, there is a lot more to the story. this is another long standing family property which has survived the french system of inheritance. the production is relatively small and from parcels on a variety of soils. i have had a number of wines from this producer, and have enjoyed all of them. the differences are subtle but present, and each wine can hold its own when matched against the others.

tonight's wine is DOMAINE SANTA DUC LES VEILLES VIGNES 2007, COTES DU RHONE. it is entirely special, and is about $15 in the pennsy state stores. it is dark purple, has a nose of tar, petrol, and garrigue, and tastes of red fruit- cherry and plum. the finish has balanced tannins.

i think this is a great wine and rivals many chateauneufs. 2007 was a exceptional year, but this producer consistently makes outstanding wines. i would strongly recommend any wine from santa duc and i hope to visit the property this fall on our next trip to the southern rhone.

the details:

Origin: Collections of old vines (50 years old) consisting mainly of Grenache

Grape varieties: Old Grenache vines 60%, Syrah 20%, Mourvèdre 10%, various others (Cinsault, Cournoise,Carignan) 10%.

Production process: Harvesting with all stalks removed, a long fermentation and controlled temperatures.

Ageing process: Ageing in vats on lees with a small dose of sulphur (SO2) to enhance the fruit and its freshness. Bottling without filtration.

Land: Collections of several soil type: lithosol, marl and red clay soils

www.santaduc.com

so a few weeks ago i mentioned this wine and asked what the derivation of the name was. answer:"the Grand-duc owl which sings, (known as «Canta duc» in Provencal), his name has become over time «Santa Duc»."

great wines from a reliable producer. strongly recommend this one.

wine tip of the day

do not wear a white shirt on a tasting expedition, i have made this error and it takes several washings to get the stains out of the left sleeve (i spit over my left shoulder).

just to keep life in perspective...

for some reason i am just having a tough time writing about wine when this is what is going on. we focus on nature, its wonders, and its products (one of which is wine) and then we face this massive catastrophe.

the ventoux rose was out of the pennsy wine shops before i could get more. so goes it with a really special wine. we did get to enjoy 2 glasses of it at a center city restaurant this afternoon.

i have the honig sauvignon blanc and domaine santa duc cotes du rhone to review, as well as another which is literally ready to put up. stay tuned. you might want to pick up the honig and the santa duc before it all is gone. anyone know the derivation of the name santa duc? if you don't stay tuned to learn.

now, someone explain the physics of fluids at high pressure and low temperature. so we have flow through a fixed diameter tube but as pressure and temperature change the fluid goes from a non-compressible liquid phase to an expanding volume of compressible gas, and what happens as it rapidly expands????

sorry for the political comment, but i feel bad for the planet's new dead sea.