The Good Stuff

Rare But Tasty- Fie Gris

2/11/2014

We've been talking a lot about rare or unusual varietals at work lately, and I thought I'd take the opportunity to share a little info about one of my faves.
Depending on where you live, and what kind of wine stores you have access to, you might have a hard time finding Fie Gris. But if you can, it's worth it. (It's so unusual, it doesn't even have a wikipedia page!)

Fie Gris is thought to be an ancient ancestor of Sauvignon Blanc and is, to this day, really only grown in France's Loire Valley. Furthermore, not many winemakers are making 100% Fie Gris wines, let alone exporting them (I'll give you a few to look for below.) However, if you can find them, you won't be sorry!

Like Sauvignon Blanc, Fie Gris is often juicy and full of fruit, though has much less fruitiness than many American and Australian Sauvignon Blancs, and no grassiness of South African SB. It is lightly perfumy, crisp, and tart- making it a lovely summer wine, but also a great food wine. Because most of the soil in the Loire is pretty flinty, they also get a touch of mineral flavor to them (not a BS wine term, I promise- think of licking a wet stone.)

If you feel like stepping outside the box and trying a new, unusual variety, give Fie Gris a shot. It's delicious and worth the hunt. Don't believe me? Ask my parental units! My stepsister gifted my mom and stepdad a bottle at Christmas, which they thoroughly enjoyed- so much so, they say they may be ruined on Chardonnay- something I never thought possible!

Here are a few to look out for at your local wine shop (we've carried both, and the internet seems to tell me they're out there in other places too.)
Prey et Fils
Eric Chevalier (incidentally, the importer, Kermit Lynch tends to import great stuff. Dependably really good. If you see his name, it's a good bet it'll be a tasty bottle.) I have a bottle of this stuff in the fridge, waiting for a special occasion! We'll pretty much never carry it again at the shop, so I feel glad I snagged a bottle!

Let me know if you try any and what you think- also, if there are any other good versions out there that you know of, let me know!

Cheers!

0 Comments

Stop and smell the rose(s)

1/4/2014

1 Comment

So I know I've mentioned I'm pretty wild about rose. Rose, in my humble opinion, is great year-round and with almost any food.
I also love thinking about the care that goes into making it!
Most rose is made by taking red wine grapes (truly, almost any red wine grape can be made into rose, though it is usually the lighter bodied, fruitier ones) and then depending on how much color and flavor is wanted, processed one of the following ways:

Letting the weight from the grapes on top of the bin break up the grapes on the bottom, and in doing so, the skins of the broken grapes give just a hint of color and flavor to the juice. Only a little bit of juice is obtained here, and it usually will be bled off, while the remaining grapes will be crushed, fermented, and made into red wine (this process is called "saignee" which means "bleeding" in French.) It is difficult to control just how much color you'll get here, but it is economical, and when done well, very, very tasty.
If the grapes are very dark and bold, then sometimes they are brought into the winery and pretty much pressed right away. In the pressing, a little bit of color will be extracted (in cases where white wines are made from red grapes, this is the method used. With light grapes like pinot noir, you can manage to get almost no color at all!) but the skins and seeds are kept out of the juice enough to keep it from becoming red wine.
With lighter grapes, often the winemaker will crush as with a red wine, but rather than letting the juice ferment on the skins for a few days, it'll be pressed off after a number of hours. This gives the winemaker control over just how much color and flavor they want brought into the wine. It can involve staying up all night checking the juice!
Finally... Some roses are actually made by blending red and white wines... To me, this is a cop-out, but it does happen...usually in California- get it together, California.

At this point, the pink juice will be fermented, usually to dryness, and processed much as a white wine would be.

Hopefully, reading that list helps you realize just how much care a winemaker has to exert in order to get a good rose! You can't just set it and forget it with this one. If you know what color and flavor profile you want your wine to have, you have to keep checking the juice as you go along- making sure it doesn't get too dark or bold. Once it slips too far, you've got red, and can lose the delicacy and lightness associated with rose.

Some the roses I've liked best have been made from Syrah, Cinsault, Gamay, Grenache, and even Pinot Noir (which isn't always my fave as a red, but lends itself to a light, earthy rose.)

You'll notice I didn't go into the pink moscatos, white zinfandels, and other overly-sweet abominations... This is because I think they've given rose a terrible reputation, and I don't like them! My choice!

Go find a nice bottle of rose, chill it, and as you sip it, think about all the care and love that went into its creation! Mmmm!

1 Comment

Cult Booze...

12/29/2013

0 Comments

This post is much more about me trying to make sense of the crazy world in which we live.
Apparently, there are people in the world who are so obsessed over cult beverages that they will pay thousands of dollars for them. THOUSANDS. OF. DOLLARS. For something that is meant to be consumed. Not a house, not a car, not surgery, or chemotherapy, or college, or a trip to Europe, but alcoholic beverages.
Call me naive, but until I started working in the retail industry this past year and got my first phone call asking for Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon, I didn't really realize this was a thing. But boy is it!
Here in Chicago, people took to following around the distribution trucks from store to store, hoping to catch them on the day the shipments came in. "People, how are you going to pay for this stuff (retail was "only" about $300) if you don't go to your jobs!?" I wanted to yell at them.
Then this fall, people waited in line for hours outside large liquor stores, and our phone rang off the hook with people looking to get their hands on Goose Island's Bourbon County Stout series. NUTS, I tell you.
I understand that 80-90% of the fervor of these fans is the idea that they could possible get something no one else can. I get that. But it still seems NUTS.
However, I was thinking... I haven't seen really this much cult attention drawn to wine. Why is this? I can't figure out what cultural differences there are between die-hard bourbon fans, beer fans, and wine fans that lead them to not be scrambling for highly allocated, small-batch wines. Whither the wine geek love?
What do you all think? Why the difference, and is a bottle of bourbon really worth $2500?
Thoughts?
Also, I should squeeze in an apology for skipping a week. The holidays got me! But I am back, and the 1 yr anniversary of the blog is coming up! I'll have to cook up some fun posts!

0 Comments

Taste the price

12/17/2013

1 Comment

I give a lot of thought to wine quality vs price. I would dare say that most of the time, (yes, most,) more expensive wines are of better quality than cheaper wines. When you jump up to $20 and $30+ bottles, the care exercised by small, boutique winemakers, the quality of the fruit, and the craft of the winemaking really begins to shine. It is difficult for small producers to offer bottles below $15. Some can do it, but will then wind up using their lower quality juice in those batches. I know I've harped on this before. I know... But now, I'm going to give you an assignment.

Pick a varietal from a region of the world- let's say Washington Cabernet, (I'm pre-disposed towards WA wines, I confess.) Purchase 4 bottles.
1. One that falls near or under $10
2. One that is between $10 and $20
3. One that is around $20
4. And one that is closer to $30 (or even $40 if you're feeling spendy.)

Do not research first to see what you know about the producers. Just base your decisions on price. This is important.

Place each bottle in a paper bag once opened and mix them up so you do not know which is which. If you can get help with this, even better (though this assignment is more fun with a friend.)

Write A, B, C, D on the mixed up paper bags. The letters should have nothing to do with the wine inside at this point.

Take a piece of paper and set 4 wine glasses on it. Then, write A, B, C, D in front of one of each glass.
Pour the corresponding wine from each bag into the glass. Check out the color, sniff, taste. Make notes for yourself about your thoughts on each. (If you're tasting with a friend, try not to influence each other's thoughts just yet.)

Once you feel like you have opinions on each, go ahead and take the bottles out of the bag and write down which was which next to your notes.

How did your likes and dislikes correspond to the prices? Did you notice a quality difference?

Next head to the interwebs. Go to each winery's website. See if you can read up on the winemaker. How many cases were made? Where'd the fruit come from? Did the higher priced wines come from smaller craft producers?

How did all that info fit together in your mind?

If you didn't notice a difference, then congratulations! You can keep enjoying lower-priced wines. It'll be easier on your pocketbook and you're an easy peasy dinner guest (seriously. I'm not being snotty here.)

If you did notice a difference, what will be your go-to price point? Was the most expensive drastically better? Was the middle-priced wine worth it or was the least expensive wine the best bang for your buck?

If you do this experiment, please share your wines and thoughts in the comments!
This would make a fun holiday party activity! (hint, hint!)

Cheers!

1 Comment

Thanksgiving Wines

11/20/2013

0 Comments

'Tis the season here in the US- the holidays are upon us and we are often left wondering what to bring to holiday meals. Now, I love Thanksgiving. I love the variety of food, I love cooking, I love the unabashed gluttony I am able to indulge in once a year. And I love wine. Good combo! I personally think you can pair just about anything with Thanksgiving dinner because it has so many varied components. Malbec too much for the turkey? Yeah, probably. But put it alongside bacon and chestnut dressing and it probably does just fine!
That said, there are some more versatile Thanksgiving options out there, so here are my recs.

1. Dry rose. I know I harp on rose a lot. I love it, what can I say? A dry rose goes with so many things, is juicy and refreshing, and the acid helps you digest your meal. What more can you ask for? Try a blanc de noirs sparkling rose, almost any dry french rose, or, if you can find it, a gamay rose. Mmm...

2. Speaking of Gamay- Gamay! Remember my Beaujolais post? (You should, it was recent.) Beaujolais and Gamay wines are pretty much the perfect turkey wine. Fruit-forward, light bodied, acidic and lightly earthy, they really just rock it. If you're bored of Pinot Noir, give a Beaujolais a whirl.

3. Sparkling Wine. If you get a good dry sparkler like a blanc de blancs, its fizz and light dryness will again be a great, versatile accompaniment to the myriad of dishes on your Thanksgiving table. Plus, it feels fancy! (Without the necessity of a high price tag. More for your buck = more gluttony! Yay America!)

4. Sauvignon Blanc. Now, this one can run either too fruity or too grassy, but a nice, tart version can be a delish option.

5. Viognier. This grape is a little chameleon. Depending on where it is grown and how the wine is made, it can show off tropical fruit, or even a mineral, oaky funk. Either one goes well with T-Day food. Mmm

6. Pinot Noir. Now, I guess this one is making my list only as a crowd pleaser. I think it is a boring, safe option for this kind of meal, but, it really can work. Depends on your personal tastes. I probably won't be taking one to MY meal, however, wherever that winds up being this year, but you do your thing.

Anyone else have any T-Day faves? Share away!

0 Comments

Wine Storage- to cool or not to cool?

9/21/2013

0 Comments

I get asked pretty frequently about wine storage. People get really worried about where to store their wine and why.

Well, I have a few thoughts I’ll expound on, but firstly I want to say you probably don’t really have to worry about it too much. If you’re storing it in your house, not on or near a heating vent, it is probably ok. Most wines aren’t meant to be cellared for years, and should be really consumed within a year or two of buying them. So, unless you’re amassing an expensive and old collection, you don’t really need a true cellar with temperature and moisture control.

The most important thing to remember with wine is that it really needs stability (don’t we all?) Fluctuations between extreme temperatures are what will cause issues with corks expanding and shrinking (thus letting in oxygen) or prematurely age your wine. Extreme heat can also cook your wine, causing off flavors.

Ideally, you should keep your wine in the coolest (not coldest- forget the garage,) darkest part of your house. If you have a basement (that isn’t prone to flooding) then this is the ideal spot.

If you’ve got a lot of money lying around collecting dust, then you can get a temperature controlled wine-fridge. But really, they aren’t necessary.

What about putting whites in the fridge and keeping them there? Well, this isn’t a great idea either. A), it takes up too much room, B) the fridge is too cold and cold air can cause some cork shrinkage, C) it might not be moist enough in there for the cork.

Here’s what you want to remember: You want to have an environment away from light, heat, freezing, and too much sloshing. Also, it is a safer bet to store your wine on its side so that the wine inside makes contact with the cork and keeps it from drying out (this also helps sediment settle so it doesn’t slosh up when you tip it to pour.) Drink most white wine within 3-4 years of bottling, and most red within 3-6. It’s gonna get old otherwise and really not be tasty anymore. That’s it! Relax, open a bottle, and enjoy!

0 Comments

Sherry, Niles?

9/11/2013

1 Comment

So, this post is a wee bit of a cheat, since I had to research Sherry for work this week, and am re-working what I wrote there for this purpose.
Ok, confession over- onward.

My friends most likely know that I'm a fan of Frasier. It's a funny show. I'm not ashamed. And, what do the finicky brothers Niles and Frasier drink ALL the time? Sherry (incidentally, their dad also dates a woman named Sherry for a while... coincidence?) But after all those years of watching, do you suppose people were wondering what Sherry is? Really? And what does it taste like? I'd tried it before in the past, but it never really left a huge impression- so I decided to do some more research.

Apparently, Sherry is seeing a rise in popularity- it is becoming a hip drink and mixologists are using it in cocktails a lot- who knew? So, to keep myself looking and feeling hip and trendy, here's my best attempt to explain and demystify Sherry-in a nutshell.

Sherry is a fortified wine made from white grapes grown near Jerez (if you wanna be snobby, you should pronounce it "hair-eth") in Andalusia in Southern Spain. It is impossible to universally classify Sherry because it is produced in a variety of styles made primarily from Palomino grapes. It ranges anywhere from light, acidic, dry versions (similar to white table wines,) such as Manzanilla and Fino, to darker and heavier versions that have been allowed to oxidize during barrel aging, such as Amontillado and Oloroso. Sweet dessert style Sherries are also made, usually from Pedro Ximenez or Moscatel grapes. Cream Sherries are often quite sweet and syrupy- and subsequently, pretty popular.

Its winemaking process starts out pretty much like any other wine, but after it ferments, Sherry's alcohol content is increased by fortifying it with varying amounts of a grape-based spirit. It is then aged for specific amounts of time, depending on style. As the lower-alcohol sherries age in barrel, they develop a layer of yeast referred to as “flor” that imparts unique flavors and also keeps the wine from becoming totally oxidized. Sherries that are intended to be aged for a long, long time have more alcohol added initially, to stave off unwanted infections in the wine. As a consequence, most long aged Sherries don’t develop a layer of flor and will oxidize slightly over time, giving them a darker color and flavor complexity. Most Sherries are initially fermented to dryness, meaning that that the sweet versions have had sugar added back into them after fermentation is complete.

Now, here comes the really cool part- blending. Wines from different vintages are blended in such a way as to age the wine optimally, while keeping a level of uniformity from bottle to bottle. The blending and aging system used is called the Solera system and it goes pretty much like this: Let’s say we have 8 barrels, and over the course of 8 years, each barrel is filled with one year’s sherry. After the last barrel is filled, then the 1st barrel (the oldest) is tapped and a portion of it is removed and bottled (this would be the rare case of a Sherry being labeled with a vintage.) Then, the empty part of the 1st barrel is filled with sherry from the 2nd barrel (the second oldest,) and then 2 is topped up with sherry from 3, 3 from 4, etc, all the way down to barrel 8, which is then filled with new product. This step is repeated every year (or whatever aging interval is deemed ideal.) No barrel is ever totally emptied. This process can mean that barrel 1 could have traces of the very first sherry every made at the winery! This could go on for 50-100 years. As a consequence of this system, most sherries don’t have a vintage listed on the bottle. Pretty neat and complex, eh?

I think you should totally give Sherry a chance. It's so diverse, there's bound to be a style to suit everyone. Pick up a bottle of dry fino or oloroso to have with appetizers. They'll be surprisingly light and food-friendly. Then, top the night off with a sweeter dessert version like a cream- they're popular and easy to find!

Cheers

Did you know?
Yeast is a fungus! Mmm. Fungus makes tasty treats!

1 Comment

Grappa

8/29/2013

0 Comments

Remember the post about must and pomace? Well, another historical use for the leftovers from winemaking has been the making of grappa (and brandy, but that’s another story.) Grappa is a distilled spirit (generally about 35-40% alcohol) made from grape pomace. Its style, flavor, and quality will depend on the grapes from which it is made. To be labeled a true grappa in Europe, it must be produced in Italy or the Italian speaking area of Switzerland, be made from grape pomace, and have no additional water or other ingredients added during distillation or fermentation. The distillation occurring on the solid pomace means that higher levels of methanol are created, which must then be removed (methanol is dangerous for humans to consume- and you know the old stories about moonshine making people go blind? That’s why! Too much methanol!) It's a complex process- I'm gonna say "don't try this at home."

There are 4 generally recognized categories of grappa: young, cask-conditioned (aged in oak,) aromatic (distilled from aromatic grapes like muscat,) and aromatized (flavor is added after distillation.)

It is typically drunk after a meal, either as a nice cold shot, or as an addition to espresso. E molto Italiano!

0 Comments

Let's Make some Assumptions!

8/8/2013

1 Comment

This post was inspired by a comment from Sonja on one of my more recent posts about how to know what to ask for when shopping for wine. She brought up the point that she often finds she isn’t familiar with many wines on restaurant menus, so just winds up ordering the same old things she already knows.

Well, there are some tricks you can use to guess what the wines will be like. I’m getting better at this all the time. Having a baseline knowledge of geography and world climates is actually extremely useful.

As a very general rule of thumb, regions with warmer, sunnier climates will produce bolder, more intensely flavored wines. This is because, (and this is especially true of red wines) the sun and heat causes a concentration of sugar, color and flavor compounds in the berries. This leads to juicier, fruitier flavors, higher alcohol, darker colors, and, depending on how the grapes are treated and whether they’re aged in oak, yields spicier, more tannic wines. Take, for example, Pinot Noir. Pinots from cooler climates tend to be more acidic, lighter in color, not especially fruity, and are earthier and funkier, with more of a wet leaves flavor. Whereas Pinots from warmer regions tend to have more of a jammy fruit flavor up front. They may have some earthy funk underneath, but they’re going to be much bolder with the fruit, darker colored, lower acid, and often, higher in alcohol.

You can make some similar assumptions about white wines (though the distinctions are sometimes less obvious.) Wines from cooler climates are going to have more acid, more subtle fruit flavors (more apple and stone fruit notes) and wines from warmer climates will often have bolder, more tropical fruit notes, due to the concentration of flavor and aroma compounds.

There’s actually a lot more scientific reasoning behind this having to do with respiration of the vines, etc. But it is complicated, and I don’t feel like going into it.

It also helps to know a little bit (and this takes research and experience) about what styles of wine are made in a particular region. For instance, California likes to oak the shit out of their Chardonnay. Very smoky and oaky. (Not my thing, but you know…) Whereas France like to let a little bit of bacteria produce a compound called diacetyl. This gives the wine a buttery flavor. Therefore, French Chardonnay has a more rounded, buttery flavor in your mouth.

So, say you see a red wine from Spain. What, generally would you expect it to be like?
What about a Rhone red blend? Sicily? Northern Italy? Southern France?
What could you expect from a Sauvignon Blanc from Australia versus one from France?

See? You can start to make some educated guesses there. And, once you start to figure out what you like in wines, you can start to order based on those guesses! Not bad, eh?

Did You Know?
Diacetyl, the compound that gives wine its buttery flavor, is also used in laboratories to give foods a fake butter flavor. Yep, your popcorn and jelly beans have bacterial byproducts in them. Yum!

1 Comment

WHAT is that crud in my wine!?

7/25/2013

0 Comments

The photo on the left shows a web of crystals in an unfiltered, unstabilized bottle of rose. On the right, you see crystals left on the edge of the glass from the last pour of a (different) bottle.

Maybe you’ve had the last of a white wine bottle (or a rose) and found what looked like tiny shards of glass in it? Or maybe you’ve had a red with lot of dark crumblies in the bottom (as evidenced in the picture on the upper left, they can even form long, crusty chains that are sort of ring shaped in the bottom of the bottle.) I remember wine tasting once in college and being sure there was a fragment of stem in my glass (which, knowing what I know now, unless it was put there as a joke by the tasting room staff is pretty much impossible.) It was likely a decent sized chunk of sediment...

So, what is this sediment? Should you be worried? Should you return the bottle and demand a refund?
Relax.

These little crystals are tartrate salts (usually in the form of potassium bitartrate) and are likely the byproduct of tartaric acid additions early in the winemaking process. Acid is usually added in cases where the fruit is overly ripe or imbalanced in terms of sugar vs acid.

Tartrates are usually fully settled out of the wine before bottling by chilling the wine in a large stainless steel tank. The salts precipitate out due to the cold temperature and the wine is then removed, leaving the salts in the bottom of the tank. However, the solubility of tartrates is also affected by other components such as alcohol content. So sometimes not all of them successfully settle out. Or sometimes the winemaker may not have anticipated a need to cold-settle them to begin with (especially in red wines.) Then, depending on the temperature changes they experience in your house, in the fridge, the grocery store or the semi truck in which they were transported, those salts may become crystallized again and settle out into the bottom of your bottle.

They’re a little crunchy on your teeth, so you may choose to just toss out the dregs if you find them (or, if you're feeling fancy, use a decanter and leave the salts in the bottle,) but they won’t hurt you. And hey, if you find some and are curious, feel free to fish them out of the glass and give them a good crunch! Yum! (or at least “meh!”)

Did you know?
The beautiful photo on my homepage was taken in Beaune (which is in Burgundy) on my only trip to French wine country. It was back in 2007, before I'd really delved into this journey- I'd love to go back knowing what I know now!

0 Comments

<<Previous

Rare But Tasty- Fie Gris

Stop and smell the rose(s)

Cult Booze...

Taste the price

Thanksgiving Wines

Wine Storage- to cool or not to cool?

Sherry, Niles?

Grappa

Let's Make some Assumptions!

WHAT is that crud in my wine!?

Author

Archives

Categories