Style: American Brown Ale
ABV: 6.2%
Presentation: Single 650 ml brown bottle
Brewery: Rogue Ales Brewery
Country: Newport, Oregon, U.S.A.

KANPAI! w/ Jeff Werstiuk

Rogue is a craft brewery that has never been shy about experimenting, or utilizing seemingly exotic ingredients in their beers. Hailing from the heart of the American Pacific North West, they are also not shy about their heavy use of hops either, which tends to dominate the majority of their regular line up.

This is actually one of the major complaints I hear from people getting started in discovering the world of craft beer, and one of the major factors of why they tend to shy away from Rogue. From personal experience I can confess it took me years to develop a palate that relished in the wonderful realm of hops, and remember how intimidating they can be to the uninitiated.

Something people tend to overlook when it comes to this craft brewery from Oregon is that they still produce some sweeter, malt focused styles that also don’t shy away from Rogue’s reputation for creativity, or intensity of flavour. In fact back in the day Rogue’s Hazelnut Brown Nectar used to be one of my favourites, and to this day remains one of my admitted guilty pleasures.

This particular brown ale is a testament of the perks behind knowing a professional brewer. The story has it that this beer was inspired by a similar homebrew designed by a fellow named Chris Studach, who just so happened to be good friends with Rogue’s Brewmaster John Maier. Studach’s vision was to take a traditional English Brown Ale, and put a PNW stamp on it by adding hazelnuts to it, a nut that grows abundant in that part of North America. Maier took things a step further and turned it into a commercial version.

As the house Brown ale for Rogue, this beer has even inspired offshoots as well. Of the three different rums that the Rogue Distillery produces, by far the most unique is the Hazelnut Spice Rum, easily inspired by the success and flavour profile of their Brown Nectar Ale. Also currently available is the one of several collaborations between in-house Brewmaster and Distiller, in the form of John John Hazelnut, which is the Hazelnut Brown Nectar aged in barrels that once housed the Hazelnut Spice Rum. So if you find you enjoy the regular version of this ale, there are certainly extra options left open for you to explore.

Speaking of which, let’s check the beer out now. A pint glass will serve just fine for this endeavour, while a mug is just as fine if you have one you’re more partial to. I find most brown ales taste best once the chill starts to fall from them, and this one is no exception, so consider allowing the bottle to sit around 10-15 minutes before opening and serving.

Sweet malt and some nut will greet the nose the moment you open the bottle. Toasted malts, sweet nuts, and mild chocolate are what you’ll discover in the aroma once in the glass. Holding up that glass you’ll notice a dark ruby chestnut body to the brown ale, with a lingering creamy off-white head. There’s a silky smooth texture from a medium-light mouthfeel which helps to deliver a chocolaty malt flavour, along with toasted nuts and a mild hop finish. Slight mocha coffee notes round out the finish as it warms and melds into the aftertaste.

For the cheese crowd out there this particular brown ale gives you some interesting options. You could sip and nibble along with your favourite nutty, sharp or soft cheese, the latter of which will give you the effect of a liquid gourmet grilled cheese sandwich across your palate in unison with the ale. The finger food crowd would have already concluded that an assortment of fresh or roasted nuts will do nothing but play off of and accentuate the sweet toasty nuttiness of this beer. Brown ales also go great with grilled meat, from burgers to ribs. And let’s not forget dessert. From banana bread to carrot cake, coffee sponge cake to a chocolate chip zucchini loaf, Hazelnut Brown Nectar will partner up well with any of them, and most choices in between. Or consider your favourite artisanal chocolate, and call it a well-deserved indulgence.

The next steps in the cooler:

From This Brewery:
American Amber
Kell’s Irish Lager
Brutal Bitter
Captain Sig’s Northwestern Ale
Chipotle Ale
Chocolate Stout
Chatoe Rogue Dirtoir Black lager
Dead Guy Ale
Double Dead Guy Ale
Half-E-Weizen
John John Hazelnut
John John Juniper Ale
Juniper Pale Ale
Maierfest Lager
Mocha Porter
Mogul Madness
Morimoto Black Soba Ale
Shakespeare Stout
Somer Orange Honey Ale
Yellow Snow IPA
Santa’s Private Reserve
Younger’s Special Bitter
XS Imperial Porter
XS Imperial IPA
XS Imperial Red
XS Imperial Stout
XS Old Crustacean Barleywine
XS Younger’s Special Bitter

In-Style:
Alley Kat Amber Ale
Brooklyn Brown Ale
Half Pints Sweet Nikki Brown
Lost Coast Downtown Brown
Mt. Begbie Tall Timber Ale

Lateral Steps:
Pump House Fire Chief’s Red Ale
Fish Tale Organic Amber Ale
Hockley Dark Ale
Okanagan Springs Dark Lager

For The Adventurous:
Fullers London Porter
Yukon Midnight Sun Espresso Stout
Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout
Traquair House Jacobite Ale

Style: American Porter
ABV: 5.6%
Presentation: 6 packs of 355 ml brown bottles
Brewery: Anchor Brewing Company
Country: San Francisco, California, U.S.A.

KANPAI! w/ Jeff Werstiuk

The Anchor Brewing Company is a craft brewery with a fairly lengthy history, at least for a North American one. The pre-existing brewery was founded around 1871 by a German immigrant in the wake of the California Gold Rush, and had a reputation for producing the Steam Beer that was indigenous to the region.

It wasn’t until new owners took over in 1896 that the name of the brewery was changed to Anchor. Things didn’t run exactly smoothly for them either after their first decade in business. Both of the new owners died within a year of one another, and the brewery was completely destroyed in the 1906 San Francisco fire. The following owners of the rebuilt brewery made a successful go until Prohibition put them out of business. The owner after the Repeal had the place burn down on him again and rebuilt it in yet another location. Sales started to wane with the new rising demand for fizzy yellow mass-produced lagers, and the brewery once again shut down due to decline in sales, only to reopen the following year with yet another owner in a different location.

I’m not sure about you, but even I’m beginning to lose track of how many times this brewery has changed hands and locations within San Francisco over the years. Fortunately the story levels out a bit around this time. This last owner was about to go bankrupt in 1965 when a fan of their Steam Beer, Frederick (Fritz) Louis Maytag III the great-grandson of the Maytag appliance mogul, purchased a majority share in the brewery, and in 1969 became sole owner.

What Fritz Maytag managed to do was maintain one of the first micro-breweries in the U.S. since Prohibition, and became a leader in the craft brewing revival. He finally chose to retire and sell off the brewery in 2010 to the Griffin Group, a San Francisco based investment firm that specializes in premium alcoholic beverages.

While Anchor Steam remained the flagship beer for the Maytag years of the brewery, over the years Anchor has produced a small yet solid line-up of beers that have helped to set industry standards. One that stands out for me as the epitome of the style has to be Anchor’s Porter. If you’ve never tried a Porter before, or haven’t had much experience with the style, this is the one to compare all others with.

Anchor Porter was first brewed in 1972, and has been bottled since 1974. To this day it remains an acclaimed world-class version of this style if you don’t just want to take my opinion on it.

Unless you have a particular favourite stemmed glass, go with a mug or a pint glass to serve this Porter in. I’ve found this Porter to taste good at pretty much any temperature, but the optimum zone would be to allow it to warm 15-20 minutes before serving.

You could mistake the colour of Anchor Porter for black, but in actuality it is a very dark brown and will produce translucent ruby highlights. Expect a tall creamy off-white head on the pour that will retain for quite some time. Dry roasty malt, molasses, hints of chocolate and coffee can be found in the aroma. While the flavour is more than ample, this is one of those rare wonderful occasions when the sum is still greater than its parts, and the role of craftsmanship starts to enter the realm of alchemy. Across the palate you will encounter dry toasty and roasty malt up front, some sticky sweetness rising in the middle, and finishing with a well tempered dose of burnt malt and char. Perhaps it doesn’t sound like much, but it all works together astonishingly well. The mouthfeel is medium-bodied with low carbonation, slick at first but finishes creamy smooth.

This Porter from Anchor is as versatile as it is tasty. Some Gouda, Limburger or aged Cheddar will contrast well. Of course smoked or grilled meats will also be an ideal plan to pair with. A big bowl of dirty rice or jambalaya is a savoury compliment to the roastiness of this Porter, along with earthy bean-based Mexican dishes. Even with dessert you could pair this beer with a rich chocolate cake or brownies, pecan pie, fresh berries or a berry-focused cake or pie.

The next steps in the cooler:

From This Brewery:
Anchor Liberty Ale
Anchor Steam

In-Style:
Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale
Rogue Mocha Porter
Butte Creek Organic Porter
Fuller’s London Porter
Samuel Smith’s Taddy Porter
Paddock Wood London Porter
Tree Spy Porter

Lateral Steps:
Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout
St-Ambroise Oatmeal Stout
Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock
Gulden Draak

For The Adventurous:
Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout
Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout
Thomas Hardy’s Ale

“Rumor has it that the Vampire Vineyards are actually owned by a circle of vampires, and the company’s founder, an entertainment attorney from New York, is actually just a front. (Whether he and his convertible were commandeered by a Vampire is still a subject for debate.) We do know however that after satiating themselves for years with their Transylvanian blood of the vine, the powers that be decided to spice things up and migrate westward like so many vampires before them.” (Vampire.com website)

Now I know a lot of you are probably thinking that here is a company riding the Vampire band wagon. You would be correct about vampires being more popular with the onset of Twilight, True Blood, The Vampire Diaries and a number of other books, movies and TV shows. Although this onslaught of vampire-media has created more awareness, what you may not know is that Vampire Wines have been around since the mid 1980’s. The idea was the brainchild of lawyer Michael Machat.

The wines originally came from Transylvania. Yes you read that correctly. We first started to see these Transylvanian wines on the shelves in Alberta around 1996. They were produced in relatively small amounts at that time. The first labels had a demonic funky feel to them. They were reproduced from tapestries that hung in old castles in Romania.

The brand started to grow and the label changed to become a little more “main stream”. More growth saw more changes. The owners of Vampire wines wanted people to take them seriously. They didn’t want a gimmicky label that would make people think that they made gimmicky wines. Mark Morton of Vampire Wines says “We are proud of our wines.” “The Vampire wines are made for everyday consumption.” Not just for around this time of the year.

The wines made a leap from Transylvania, Romania to California, U.S.A. The move allowed Vampire to have more control from the ground to the bottle. It also allowed for further growth. In 2006 Vampire became a licensed winery. They “wanted to ensure high quality.” They purchase their grapes from a number of vineyards throughout the North Coast region. “The grapes may be from Napa, Sonoma or other counties in the region.” They have the ‘advantage of purchasing the grapes from wherever’ they want. They also have a winemaking team who help to bring their vision to consumers.

Vampire Wines will be opening a Tasting Room in Beverly Hills in the not too distant future. It will be the only tasting room in Beverly Hills. It will be located on Santa Monica Boulevard across from The Peninsula Beverly Hills. There isn’t a firm date for opening, but tune into their website. I am sure a date will be posted as soon as it gets a bit closer.

Vampire Cabernet Sauvignon

Winery: Vampire Vineyards
Location: North Coast Appellation, California, U.S.A.
Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon (with just a touch of Syrah and Merlot)
Tasting: Wednesday, October 27, 2010 - 4:00 – 7:00 p.m

Map sourced from “California Wine Info”

The Vampire Vineyards folks say: “Classic, small-lot fermentations, followed by aging with both European and American oak, gives full expression to the rich varietal flavors in this wine. Judiciously blended with small amounts of Merlot for softness, and Syrah for added structure, our Cabernet displays ripe flavor character and a lovely aroma that will continue to develop with additional time in bottle.”

Food Pairing:

Grilled Pork Chops with onions, peppers and a Cabernet Sauvignon reduction; Roast Beef; Grilled hamburgers with rosemary.

CSPC: 726562
Price:

$16.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice

Vampire White Zinfandel

Winery: Vampire Vineyards
Location: North Coast Appellation, California, U.S.A.
Blend: White Zinfandel
Tasting: Wednesday, October 27, 2010 - 4:00 – 7:00 p.m.

Vampire Vineyards says that this White Zinfandel is “the perfect wine for picnics, luncheons or lighter fare, our White Zinfandel is also an ideal aperitif or casual afternoon sipping wine. Enjoy with good food and great friends.” Mark Morton of Vampire Vineyards says that the White Zinfandel “is the best kept secret in our portfolio”. It came into the marketplace about 3 years ago.

Food Pairing:

Roast Pork with a sweet fruit sauce; Chicken salad; Apple Crisp

CSPC: 726564
Price:

$16.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice

We are taking a road trip to British Columbia next week. Come share the ride with us. We have lots of room and would love to have your company.

Map sourced from vinovixens

Farming has been in this family’s veins since the mid 1800’s.  However they didn’t plant their first vines until over a hundred years later in 1968.  Bogle Vineyards has grown from their initial 20 acres of wine grapes 42 years ago, to the over 1,200 acres today.  Bogle’s home in Clarksburg, California is located alongside the Sacramento River.  What a great spot for a vineyard.

Patty and the late Chris Bogle became involved with the vineyards at the very early stages when planting vines in 1970.  Nineteen years later, Patty took over the operations of the winery.  Her daughter, Jody, is involved in customer support, she runs the wine club and takes care of all international sales.   Warren Bogle, Patty and Chris’s son, is the Vineyard Manager.   He is the 6^th generation of Bogles to farm this Sacramental Delta Region.

“The success of Bogle over the years is firmly rooted in one thing: the day-to-day involvement of the Bogle family in the hands-on effort to produce and promote quality wines. ”

Bogle Winery joined the California Appellation Program in 1992.  “In this program, winemakers source fruit from some of the best vineyards in the state and blend them with Bogle’s Estate Vineyards in Clarksburg, thus assuring that the wines benefit from many of the incredible grape growing regions of California.”  They are also members of the Clarksburg Winegrowers Association Now let’s try these wines!

Bogle Petite Sirah

Winery: Bogle Vineyards
Location: Clarksburg, California
Blend: Petite Sirah
Tasting: Wednesday, October 13, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m

Let’s get the name thing out of the way right away.  You will see this grape spelled many ways.  Petite Syrah, Petit Sirah, Petite Sirah, and Durif. Which one is right?  Well, they are all right.  The last name… Durif… is the name of the gentleman who developed the grape in France in the late 1800’s.  His name is Dr. Francois Durif, a botanist at the University of Montpellier in France.  Dr. Durif developed the grape by crossing the Syrah grape with the Peloursin variety in the 1870’s.  This new grape variety was resistant to Powdery mildew, but because of its very tight bunches, it is said to have issues with ‘rot’.  Although there are a few wineries still growing the grape in its native Rhône (France), you will also see it grown in Australia, USA, Brazil and Argentina to name just a few countries.  There are only a few wineries that call it Durif, but by far in the United States of America you will see it called Petite Syrah (or its many other spellings).

We always find it funny calling this grape “Petite”, because there surely is nothing “Petite” about it.  In fact, this grape is known for making wines that are dark and inky in colour and extremely round and full in the mouth.  People quite often think that a Petite Syrah is going to taste like a Syrah (Shiraz), but it is dense and the tannic structure cannot be missed for sure.  The colour, compared to Syrah is a deep dark purple.  If you tried them side-by-each… even blind… you would be able to tell they are not the same.

Bogle says this about their Petite Sirah:  “Full-bodied on the entry, aromas of black plum jam and toasty oak set the stage for what is to come. Vibrant boysenberries and luscious fruit are framed by serious tannins, while wisps of leather and vanilla seduce just enough. A final touch of acidity finishes the wine with a precisely balanced mouthfeel.”

Food Pairing:

Hearty dishes:  Lamb stew; Game (sausages or stew); Pork

CSPC:     431478
Price:

$21.50 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing.  Price subject to change without notice

Bogle Fumé blanc (Sauvignon Blanc)

Winery: Bogle Vineyards
Location: Monterey and Russian River Valley Vineyards
Blend: Sauvignon Blanc
Tasting: Wednesday, October 13, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

What is a Fumé Blanc?  It is a term that was coined by Robert Mondavi for California Sauvignon Blanc wines that were made in the style of Pouilly Fumé (Sauvignon Blanc) in the Loire Valley in France.

The story goes that Sauvignon Blanc was not a lauded variety in California prior to 1970.  A lot of the wines were supposedly lighter and sweeter.  After receiving exceptional Sauvignon grapes from a particular vintage, Mr. Mondavi was apparently inspired by Pouilly Fumé wines that he had tasted in France.  He decided that he wanted to make his wine in this style.  As a result, he wanted to differentiate his wines from all of the others.  That is when he apparently coined the term Fumé Blanc.  Today there are many wonderful Sauvignon Blanc wines from California.  Bogle describe this wine as being “classically made” and having the “true varietal character of the Sauvignon Blanc Grape”.

This particular Sauvignon Blanc is described by the winery in this way:  “Freshly zested limes spring off the nose, followed by leechee nut and a tiny bit of orange peel. The citrus follows through on the palate, tinged by hints of tropical pineapple. Lean and light, yet surprisingly full of flavor, the wine finishes with brisk acidity that makes your mouth water for more!”

Food Pairing:

Light fare:  Salads; Fresh Fish with Fruit Salsas; Shellfish;

CSPC:     431486
Price:

$18.75 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing.  Price subject to change without notice

We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday afternoon.  We will be there with bells on!!

Style: American Amber/Red Ale
ABV: 5.9%
Presentation: 6 packs of 355 ml brown bottles
Brewery: Lagunitas Brewing Company
Country: Petaluma, California, U.S.A.

KANPAI! w/ Jeff Werstiuk

Try getting a straight answer out of the PR folks at Lagunitas. Granted you’ll get some amusing blurbs on the labels of their beer that tends to draw your attention away from the product in hand. Scour their website for more of the same obscure and vague stream of conscious banter that seems more like a wild goose chase than anything else. It’s almost like they’re hiding something, distracting you from something more pertinent that they don’t want you to know or find out about. I’d be willing to write this all off as some sort of pre-meditated sinister plot if it wasn’t for the fact that in general they make some well-crafted tasty beers.

Then I’m reminded that their motto is, “Beer speaks, people mumble,” and realize that this flippant approach stems from that frame of mind. A stance acknowledging the fact that no matter what they tell you about their beer, it’s the beer that gets the final word. And that if you don’t like what that beer has to say then nothing they tell you is going to bring you back for more. So with all that smoke and mirror action they are actually being up front and honest—in a roundabout sort of way of course…..

After all of that we come around to their Censored Ale. Censored? What the heck are they hiding here? Nothing really, except for something the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms didn’t want you to see. This copper ale was originally called Kronik, and rather than changing the name they simply chose to obviously slap a “Censored” bar across it, I suppose to make the Federal injunction against it more obvious in the process. Now that you’re in the know if you look close enough you can see the fringes of this word still exposed behind the black bar.

Moving beyond the politics and legalities and controversy behind it all, let’s look further into the style of the American Amber Ale that this beer falls into. It’s something of an ambiguous category that was invented in the Western U.S. States during the 1990’s. Too dark to be considered a Pale Ale, not hoppy enough to fit in as an IPA, it soon spread across North America, many times to the fate of becoming a sweet malty catch-all beer to woo in the uninitiated to the craft beer scene, and for countless people this was the first ale they ever tried. With their Censored, Lagunitas clings tightly to their West Coast roots and makes sure that there is a healthy helping of hops to be found within this otherwise caramel sweet coppery ale. The result is a rather satisfying and balanced beer, although in the end it’s one for those who carry an appreciation for citrusy American hops.

This is a pretty easy-going style to begin with, and Censored isn’t quite fussy either, so choice of glassware is up to you on this one. I’d also let it sit out about 10 minutes before opening, just to allow the malt a chance to catch up with the hops in the flavour.

No lies to be found on the label for this beer, it does indeed pour out a rich copper colour, with a slight chill-haze. The aroma is rich and full, with caramel and toasted malts, dates and currents, and some citrus zest. Into the flavour you’ll find some mild malt and dry fruit at first, with the bright citrusy hops showing up in the middle, and then a buttery sweet caramel malt swells in the finish to unite with the hops. The flavour rides into town on a full and creamy smooth mouthfeel with low carbonation.

Food options are fairly broad for this American Amber Ale, easily running the full gamut of pub fare: from fish and chips to fully dressed nachos or piled high burgers, and pretty much everything in between. If it’s not excessively spicy this ale will pair quite nicely with the savoury properties of Mexican and Thai cuisine. From finger food to chopsticks Lagunitas Censored has you covered.

The next steps in the cooler:

From This Brewery:
Dogtown Pale Ale
Hop Stoopid
Lagunitas Imperial Stout
Lagunitas IPA
Maximus
Lagunitas PILS

In-Style:
Rogue American Amber Ale
Fish Tale Organic Amber Ale
Tree Thirsty Beaver
Yukon Red
Pump House Fire Chief’s Red Ale

Lateral Steps:
Fuller’s London Pride
Pump House SOB
Wellington Arkell Best Bitter
Anchor Liberty Ale
Alley Kat Full Moon Pale Ale

For The Adventurous:
Dogfish Head 90 Min. IPA
Tree Hophead
Central City Red Racer IPA
Houblon Chouffe Dobbelen IPA Tripel

Washington has been a popular place for us to visit this summer. As well it should, actually. There are a lot a great wines coming out of this area, but so many people are still not aware that wine is made here. We mentioned in a previous article that in 2009 the State of Washington registered its 600th winery. The news now is that there are over 650 wineries. That is amazing growth! That is a long way up from the first vines that were planted in Fort Vancouver, Washington by the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1825. To give you a good idea how this area has grown in wine production, in 1987 the state harvested 46,000 tons of grapes and in 2006 that had jumped to 120,000 tons.

CHARLES SMITH WINES

K Vintners was the first, then came The Magnificent Wine Company and now Charles Smith Wines. Charles Smith is the heart and soul of all three. I love how they describe Charles on his websites:

“Owner-winemaker Charles Smith with his big hair, kick ass attitude and bold packaging arrived in the Walla Walla Valley following eleven years in Scandinavia managing rock bands.”

That just says it all. This man is shaking up the wine world with his attitude and his wines that are think out of the box. He calls his wines names like… BOOM BOOM! Syrah, Kung Foo Girl Riesling, K Syrah, M.C.K. (Motor City Kitty). His philosophy is “It’s just booze – drink it.” After all, that is what we really want to do, right!

It truly is amazing what he has done over the past decade. Here is a man who has never taken a wine course and has never had formal training in wine making. However, he has been around the wine industry ‘both personally and professionally all of his life. Charles is making all kinds of headlines for his wines. In 2009 Wine Enthusiast Magazine gave him 100 points for his 2006 Royal City Syrah and #2 on their Top 100 Wines of 2009.

Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate, October 2009 said: “When it comes to his wines, the otherwise wild and irrepressible Charles Smith is as serious as a heart attack.” In 2008 this was also written in The Wine Advocate “K Vintners (Charles Smith Wines) is where the larger-than-life Charles Smith presides. He is an innovator, marketing genius, outspoken, you name it – but above all the man is a brilliant winemaker who knows where all the great fruit is hidden.”

The 2008 Annual Buying Guide of Wine & Spirits Magazine bestowed “Winery of the Year upon them. In April 2010 Seattle Magazine also gave Charles the title of “Winemaker of the Year”. To say that he has come far in this last decade would be the preverbal understatement of the year… or should I say decade.

Winery: Charles Smith Wines
Vintage: 2007
Location:Columbia Valley, Washington, U.S.A.
Alcohol: 13%
Blend: 100% Single Vineyard Pinot Gris
Tasting: Wednesday, September 1, 2010 - 4:00 – 7:00 p.m.

The grapes for this wine come from one single vineyard called Evergreen.
Generally speaking, Pinot Gris - produces a light to medium-bodied white wine. It can also produce some lovely more full-bodied wines, especially from Alsace, France. It should have nice aromas with a wee bit of a floral nose. Pinot Gris is one of the four “noble grapes” of Alsace.

This wine leaves you wanting for more. It is refreshing. It is crisp and has nice minerality to it. The floral is there with the scent of rose petals. The fruit… all the stone fruits are evident. An easy drinking wine that is going to pair with some nice food.

Food Pairing:

Seafood pasta; Smoked Cheese; Sheep’s Milk Cheese; Prosciutto; Mildly Spicy food.

Price:

$18.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice.

Wing away with us next week. Richard and I are off to taste some organic wines from Argentina.

Map Courtesy of the Washington Wine Commission

I can’t tell you how many people are so surprised when I tell them about wineries in Washington. They are so shocked and most of them had no idea that wine was made in this lovely northwestern state. So when I tell them that in 2009 the 600th winery was registered, well you could just about pick them up off of the floor. Washington is an area to be reckoned with, for sure. The wine industry here is relatively young, but the Washington is now the second highest producer of wine in the United States next to California.

I have heard the expression ‘Washington = Merlot’. While that is true, Washington wineries also make wonderful wines from Syrah, Viognier, Riesling, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon to name just a few. Lucky us, we get to try a Syrah from Duck Pond Cellars and a Viognier from Desert Wind (by Duck Pond Cellars).

Winery: Duck Pond Cellars
Vintage: 2007
Location:Washington, U.S.A.
Alcohol: 13.5%
Blend: 96.3% Syrah, 3.7% other red varieties
Tasting: Wednesday, August 11, 2010 - 4:00 – 7:00 p.m.

It is amazing how far one can come in just 17 years. That is how old Duck Pond Cellars is. In that relatively short period of time, they have amassed 14 wines. Like most wineries, we are not able to get all of them here in Alberta, but we have two lovely ones… the Columbia Valley Syrah and the Willamette Valley Pinot Noir. The Rhone Valley (France) grape varieties seem to do quite well in Washington and the Syrah is a good example of that.

The vineyard where these grapes come from is called Desert Wind Vineyard (see map). It is located on East side of Washington in the area known as Wahluke Slope. This is a hot hot area. Considered to be the hottest area in the Columbia Valley. The vineyard is situated on 520 acres and the vines have an underground irrigation system to assist Mother Nature. Although this area can get up to 110F in the summer, it can dip down to 14F in the winter, giving the vines a chance to get a good winter sleep. The other area where some of the grapes are sourced is called the Sacagawea Vineyard, which is also located in the Columbia Valley.

This wine has been aged for 11 months in both French and American Oak. The French oak brings out the subtle flavours and the American oak adds a bit more ‘oomph’. That ‘oomph’ gives it an edged that helps to match it with so many different types of food. Spice and rich red berries like raspberries and a little bit of vanilla on the side, are the notes that stand out to me in this wine.

Now this time of year our minds go to the BBQ for a lot of food, because we spend so much time outdoors, and who wants to cook inside anyway!!! There are a few suggestions for the BBQ you may not have tried before. Stretch it out a little and head to your best butcher or fish shop and give these a try.

Food Pairing:

Grilled Tuna; Grilled Venison; Mushrooms and Wild Mushrooms; Grilled Duck.

CSPC: 719100
Price:

$15.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice

Winery: Desert Wind
Vintage: 2008
Location: Columbia Valley, Washington, U.S.A.
Alcohol: 13%
Blend: Viognier 100%
Tasting: Wednesday, August 11, 2010 - 4:00 – 7:00 p.m.

It was just last month that we sampled a Viognier and the response was so great that we decided to tempt your tastebuds again with this nice one from Washington.

You are probably reading this and thinking that you just read the name ‘Desert Wind’ when we wrote about the Syrah… and you would be right. In fact, the Desert Wind Winery is owned by the same family who owns Duck Pond Cellars. Like many wineries, Duck Pond has their second label. Desert Wind produces 15 different wines and we are lucky to get the Viognier here in Alberta. The first vintage was produced out of Desert Wind in 1997 and the Desert Wind Winery itself opened its doors in 2006.

Now you already know that Viognier makes an aromatic and full-bodied wine. This wine has only a touch of oak, so it still has that wonderful crisp acidity and nice fruit flavours of peach, pear and some tropical fruit. It even has a little bit of orange blossom too. Oh the food pairing for this wine is wonderful. In keeping with the BBW theme that we have going on… try roasting the nuts on the BBQ!

Food Pairing:

Roasted nuts (BBQ style); Lobster; Grilled or roasted pork; Grilled Chicken with a lemon butter sauce.

CSPC: 646083
Price:

$22.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice

Who wants to go to Portugal? Pick me… that we where we are heading next week.

Don Sebastiani & Sons

Who knew that a man who has a Degree in Government from USF and served as a California Assemblyman for three terms, would end up being in the wine industry for over three decades!  Well that describes Don Sebastiani’s life… in a nutshell.

If you are thinking that this name looks familiar, you would be right on the money.  It was just last week that we were talking about Samuele Sebastiani, Don’s Grandfather, who started Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery.  For a period of 15 years, Don sat as the CEO of the family winery.  After that time, he left to continue his love of wine in a company that Don and his brother-in-law Roy Cecchetti started in 1986.  In 2001 Roy decided to pursue some other interests.  That is when the company name changed to Don Sebastiani & Sons (the sons being Donny and August).

By the time that 2004 rolled around, the company was producing one million bottles of wines.  Just one year later in 2005, the winery was named “American Winery of the Year” by Wine Enthusiast Magazine.  A mere two years after that the company was  producing two million cases of wine.  All the while keeping with their philosophy of “bringing upscale, but moderately priced wines” to consumers like you and me.

Greg Kitchens has been the winemaker at Don Sebastiani and Sons since 2001 after working at Beaulieu Vineyards and the Sebastiani Family Winery in Sonoma County.

Greg says “We make great tasting wines by taking an aggressive approach to winemaking.  The team spends many early mornings and late nights in the vineyards and wineries where we produce our wines.  This way all our wines get the attention that they deserve and the payoff is in the bottle.”  Let’s just see, shall we…

Winery: Smoking Loon Wine Co.
Vintage: 2007
Location: California, USA
Alcohol: 13.5 %
Blend: Viognier
Tasting: Wednesday, July 14, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

Don & Sons produce a number of different labels.  Two of which we can get here in Alberta (Smoking Loon and Pepperwood Grove).  The wines we are sampling on Wednesday were part of a group of wines started by the company a decade ago.

What the heck is Viognier (VEE-ohn-YAY) anyway?  The history is a little grey, but one can say that it was very popular in the Rhône region of France for quite a number of years.  It fell out of favour for a while, but it is coming back again.  California (where Smoking Loon calls home) and Australia, have been planting a number of acres with the grape.

The Viognier grape makes a dry, full-bodied and aromatic wine.  When people get a whiff of the wine they think it might be sweet, because of all the nice floral aromas that are abundant.  Then they try the wine and are pleasantly surprised that it is in fact dry.    I have done a couple of tastings with Smoking Loon Viognier and the outcome has been very similar each time.  People are very happily surprised about how much they enjoy the wine.  Even some serious red drinkers like it, because of the layers of flavours.  Apricot, white peach, guava and a touch of honey are some of the flavours of this wine.

Food Pairing:

Butternut squash risotto; roasted chicken; chicken with a cream sauce; white fish; slightly spiced dishes (Thai).

CSPC:     715029
Price:

$16.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice

Winery: Smoking Loon Wine Co.
Vintage: 2007
Location: California, USA
Alcohol: 13.5 %
Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon
Tasting: Wednesday, July 14, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

We had a little white, now for a little red.  Well, it is not so  little truthfully.  After all, it is a Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabs are not known for being petite.  Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the grape varieties that most people have heard of.  It is grown in almost every wine country around the world.  One thing you will notice is that the alcohol is not overwhelming.  The Smoking Loon Cabernet, like the Viognier, is 13.5% ABV (Alcohol By Volume).  The flavours will come out nicely in this wine and won’t be overpowered by the alcohol.

Now you know what is coming next… decant this wine.  Get it out of the bottle, even if you pour it out into a glass and let it sit for about an hour.  As we have said many times before, this gives the wine a chance to set all those great flavours and aromas free.

I am going to digress for a quick moment.  A few years ago I was doing a tasting in Edmonton and this young gent and I were chatting about decanting wine.  He felt it wouldn’t do much good.  I said “Let’s put it this way… if you were stuck in a bottle for a couple of years or more, you’d need a little airing out wouldn’t you?”  He got a great chuckle out of that.  Back to the wine…

This Smoking Loon Cabernet Sauvignon offers lots of ‘flavours on the nose”: Raspberry and dark plum with a touch of some herbs (oregano) will be noticed.  When you taste this wine you will get blackberry, red berries, red currants, rounded off with lighter tannins.

Now what do all of these nice flavours mean for food pairing?

Food Pairing:

Chocolate (dark); beef stew (if you have never done it on the BBQ, try it); aged cheese; Gorgonzola; Grilled lamb; beef with some rosemary and/or thyme.

CSPC:     715030
Price:

$16.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice

California to Argentina is not too far a jaunt for next week.
Come join us.

Winery: Sebastiani
Vintage: 2007
Location: Sonoma County, California, USA
Alcohol: 13.5 %
Blend: 82% Zinfandel, 9.8% Petit Syrah, 7.2% Syrah
Tasting: Wednesday, June 23, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

We had the pleasure of tasting the Sebastiani wines a few years ago.  There was a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Merlot and a Zinfandel.  Now they make a number of other wines, but these three we had tried at the time.  After doing a little research on the winery, we discovered some interesting information about the vineyards and winery that made up Sebastiani.

Over one hundred years ago is when the story of this winery began when Samuele Sebastiani emigrated from Tuscany Italy.  A mere nine years after he emigrated he started the winery.  He was a man with a vision for sure.  During the period of Prohibition in the United States (1920-1933), the winery was allowed to continue making wine because it made a small amount of sacramental and medicinal wines, which was allowed under the law.  However not all of Samuele’s neighbours faired so well.  He came up with a plan to initiate some major projects both at the winery and at the plaza around one of the churches to help keep people employed.  When there was not enough at the winery to keep his employees working, he decided to start canning fruit to make up some of the difference.  He was a hard worker himself, and he expected the same of others, but he did everything he could to help people during this period of Great Depression.

Samuele passed away in 1944.  His son and daughter-in-law, August and Sylvie, purchased the winery from the estate and thus began the next expansion of Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery.  August added new varietals and proprietary blends. He was a big believer in supporting the craftsmen of Sonoma and put their skills to good use at Sebastiani, which is why you still see some of the hand-carved Sebastiani barrels at the winery today.  August was also devoted to birds and their preservation.  He had a collection of very rare doves and black swans and was also a supporter of Ducks Unlimited.  Upon August’s passing, Sylvie and their children, Sam, Don and Mary-Ann took over the management of the winery.  Sam left six years later to start his own winery.  During this period, the winery grew and started a ‘value’ brand of wines which became very successful and was eventually sold in 2001 so the family could ‘refocus’ on the family brand wines.

Don eventually left to devote his time to a winery he started in 1985 with his brother-in-law Roy Cecchetti… Cecchetti Sebastiani Cellars (now called Don Sebastiani & Sons).  Mary Ann Sebastiani Cuneo, assumed the role of president and CEO and helped lead the company through its period of transition.  “She spearheaded the multi-million dollar remodel of the Sebastiani tasting room and hospitality center completed in 2001″.  In order to make an emphasis on small lot artisan wines, the winemaking facility underwent major renovations.

In 2008, Bill Foley of Foley Family Wines acquired Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery.  There is a lot of history for sure and a there are lot of wonderful wines to come in the future.   Let’s get tasting this wine…

First of all, as always, get the wine out of the bottle so it can breathe for a while.  The nice zinfandel flavours will be more pronounced.  We usually like to let this zinfandel sit for about an hour.  This wine doesn’t have huge alcohol levels.  It comes in at 13.5% ABV.   With a lower alcohol, the fruit comes shining through.  The colour is dark ruby with purple and violet overtones.  The cherry and juicy red fruit flavours are quite noticeable.  But there are also some notes of vanilla (aged in casks for 5 months).  Bam… there is that nice spice that we love about zinfandel.  It isn’t overpowering, just a wee bit of black pepper… just enough to make it interesting.

Food Pairing:

Braised, BBQ’d or roasted Italian/Chorizo Sausage, Beef, Lamb, Pork or Venison;  Ribs with a nice spicy BBQ sauce; Parmesan cheese; Manchego (Spanish) cheese; Eggplant lasagna.

CSPC:     37275
Price:

$19.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice

Next week is June 30^th, the day before Canada Day!  See you then.

Winery: Bonterra
Vintage: 2007
Location: California, United States of America
Alcohol: 14%
Blend: 86% Zinfandel 11% Petit Syrah 3% Syrah
Tasting: Wednesday, June 9, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

Bonterra - good earth - well that just about describes it in a nutshell.  And that is just what this company is all about.  They make wine out of organically grown grapes.   Now I know some people out there think that that is a bunch of baloney, but that fact of the matter is organically produced products overall are on the rise and many consumers are demanding them.  It just so happens that in the wine part of things, Bonterra was ahead of a lot of other winemakers in producing and marketing their organic wines.

“Decades of learning and winemaking accolades have reinforced our passionate belief that our organic grapes make better wine.”   Now they ought to know, as they started this practice in 1987.  I am trying to think back 23 years ago to see what wines were being marketed as organic and I’ll be darned, but I cannot think of any right off the top of my head.  Today we are seeing many more people asking for organically grown products and it is nice to know that some companies have had a leg up for a while.

Sherbrooke carries many of the Bonterra wines.  Now some of you know that we are Zinfandel fans, so the fact that we picked the Zinfandel out of their lineup of wines to do may not be a big surprise.  Frankly, we have not had this Zin in quite some time, so it is a real pleasure to taste it again.

The grapes used to make this wine are mostly from dry-farmed fruit.  Now what does that mean to you and I?  Well, it means that the vines have to dig deep into the ground to search for that water.  What that gives the wine is more depth and character, generally speaking.  More fruit that is concentrated and less watered down.  We think of growing vegetables and fruit in our back yards, and we water the plants, right?  Well believe it or not, you don’t want do do that with your grape vines.

The grape vines that are used to make this wine are about 35 - 40 years old.  And that is a good thing.  As we humans say ‘with age comes wisdom’ and ain’t that the truth.  So it is also true that the fruit that you get from older vines, well they are going to be a little more complex and give lots of wonderful flavours.

Okay let’s tasting this wine.  Now you know that I am a big fan of decanting, so get this wine out of the bottle and let it breather for awhile.  It will bring out all the wonderful fruit and spicy notes that are so characteristic of Zinfandel.  Red Raspberry, blackberry along with some nice spicy pepper is what you will notice right off the bat.  Try it along with Diana and see what you think.  On to the food…

Food Pairing:

Spicy beef fajitas (or some other Mexican foods); BBQ beef (of course); hard cheeses; spicy spaghetti and meat sauce; turkey

CSPC:     530139
Price:

$20.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price subject to change without notice.  Price correct at time of printing.