melissa

This author has written 184 articles

Red, White & JOLY!!!

When it comes to the 4th of July at our house, we throw an annual Red, White & Bubbles celebration!!! A pyro pro from Disney World lives behind us, and provides the night’s entertainment. We, along with our friends, provide the wines. It’s always great fun to try a fun variety of wine with friends and fellow wine geeks to toast our country’s independence. 

One of the most interesting wines I cracked open for the 2015 Independence Day celebration was a bottle of the 2004 Nicolas Joly “Roche Aux Moines Clos de la Bergerie” Savennières.

Savennières is an AOC located on the right bank of the Loire River in the Loire Valley of France. La Roche aux Moines (along with Coulée de Serrant) achieved independent AOC status in 2011. In fact, the 7 hectares Coulée de Serrant AOC is owned exclusively by Joly! The Savennières region produces what many believe to be France’s most age-worthy white wines, usually made exclusively from the Chenin Blanc grape.

The 2004 Nicolas Joly “Roche Aux Moines Clos de la Bergerie” Savennières (100% Chenin Blanc) is a golden copper in color and has overripe apricot, yellow apple, honey, and almond nuttiness on the nose. The palate is ripe, not sweet, and is loaded with candied orange, baked apricot and honeyed nuts on the palate. The slight oxidation reminds me of a wonderful sherry. This exciting quality entices my nose and taste buds and makes me want more. Oh what a lovely wine this is, balanced by its acidity and concentration of flavor. Only 100 cases were made.

Nicolas Joly is one of the leading personalities in the biodynamic winemaking movement, having written extensively on the subject and having practiced this method of viticulture since 1980. Predating organics, biodynamic viticulture was developed in the early 20th century by Rudolf Steiner. This philosophy of agriculture believes that all parts of the universe are interconnected, and that the alignment of the planets and phases of the moon direct the progress in the vineyards and the winery. It actually makes a lot of sense to me, and Joly’s wines are great examples of why I’m a believer!

If you’d like to try some of the worlds most special and unique examples of the fabulous Chenin Blanc varietal, look for wines from the Loire Valley. In fact, head to the Savennières region and check out Nicolas Joly’s wines in particular!

Here’s a wonderful website detailing Joly’s wines, vineyards and viticulture philosophy:  http://coulee-de-serrant.com/uk/

 

Hitting the WINE Jackpot in Sin City!

When one thinks of Las Vegas it’s rarely of wine. I personally think of the jubilant sounds of slot machines paying lucky winners, or of the electrifying screams heard at a hot craps table.  But wine???? Hmmmm.

As Vegas has “grown up” over the years, fine dining has become a very integral part of the attraction to “Sin City”. Along with great food, of course, often comes great wine!

While visiting last month I hit an old and familiar (for me) place. My husband and I get to Vegas often, and on a long ago trip we discovered The Wine Cellar and Tasting Room at the Rio Suites Hotel and Casino.

If you like wine, this is the best bet in Vegas.  You don’t have the chance to win a bunch of cash in this quaint & chilly cellar, but you do have the opportunity to try some great wines!  Plus, it’s a great way to relax in some comfy chairs and sofas and disappear from the commotion of the casino above!

The Wine Cellar is home to about 10,000 bottles valued at more that $10 million and offers bottles, glasses and a large selection of different flights. In fact, they offer over 100 wines by the glass, as well as some wonderful international cheeses and crusty bread with which to pair the wines.

It’s a fun place to look around as well. They have some intriguing rare historical wines displayed in this “Wine Museum” including a bottle of Madeira from 1800 that was once owned by one of America’s first oenophiles Thomas Jefferson. They also have bottlings of Chateau d’Yquem with vintages from 1858 and on, as well as a 1924 Mouton Rothschild.

We must have been in a New World kind of mood that night (which is rather rare for me), because my husband ordered the Napa Cabernet Sauvignon flight and I ordered a flight of New World Merlot. In past visits, however, I’ve sampled everything from lovely Burgundy from Pommard to a 1963 Port.

So while you’re in Vegas, check this place out. If you win some cash and want to splurge, head on down and order a Sassicaia or a Penfold’s Grange. If you just want to get out of the hustle and bustle of the strip, head down to enjoy a fun flight or a glass or bottle of whatever you like. Either way, you’ll feel like you hit the jackpot!

My Husband’s Favorite Kind of Chardonnay, And I Like it Too!

I’m usually afraid of Napa Chardonnay. I know I know … that sounds snobbish. It’s just that many Napa Chardonnays are way overdone! Too much oak masking the fruit makes me very uninterested.

The other night, however, I opened a gem. My husband was off playing poker with his buddies and I had big plans on the sofa with my dogs, a chick flick, some popcorn and a wine to compliment it all.

I cracked open the 2013 Lewis Chardonnay. This wine is not for the faint of heart, but with the right pairing it can be stellar. This is rich stuff, and along with my super duper buttered popcorn and some truffle cheese, I was in pure heaven.

This golden colored wine has ripe pear, ripe golden delicious apple, pineapple, and toasty brioche on the nose. The medium plus bodied palate confirms the fruit, with some lemon curd, vanilla, baking spices and medium acidity. This is a complex wine and the perfect pairing for my buttery popcorn. It would also pair beautifully with lobster dipped in butter and a lot of other things!

This IS my hubby’s favorite style of Chard, so I saved him some. We enjoyed a glass last night, and it was delish. In fact, I liked it even more LAST night. So I saved one more small pour for tonight (the third night). Wow, it keeps getting better!!!! It is very well balanced and I’m definitely going to buy some more of this and lay it down. This Chardonnay has some time!

My husband is off playing in a poker tournament tonight! This smidgen I saved and am enjoying on the deck while the sun sets is tasting so darned good that it makes me want to open another Chardonnay, but I fear that it won’t compare. Hmmmm. What’s a girl to do???!!!!

To learn more about this Chardonnay, and the other wonderful wines made by Lewis Cellars, check them out here:  http://www.lewiscellars.com

Rajat Parr – A Somm & His Wines!

Rajat Parr is one of the most famous sommeliers in the U.S. He is also a very busy man! Not only is he wine director for the Michael Mina restaurant group in San Francisco, co-author of the highly respected Secrets of the Sommeliers (in fact, he won his first James Beard Award for this) he is ALSO a founding co-owner of a winery and a winemaker! I recently attended a wine dinner featuring some of these wines!

Held at the beautiful restaurant Capa, located on the top floor of the Four Seasons in Orlando, the dinner was lovely and the wines were fabulous! Considering that this is a WINE blog, not a food blog, I’m going to focus on the wines!

During the reception we were poured the 2012 Sandhi Santa Barbara County Chardonnay. This is NOT the typical California Chard.  This straw colored wine has white flowers, meyer lemon, apricots and honeydew melon on the nose. The palate is very well balanced with lively acidity, the meyer lemon, green apple and a touch of oak with butterscotch flavors.  I will seek this wine out and buy it by the case.  Yum!!!!

The first course of the meal was paired with the 2012 Sandhi Sanford & Benedict Chardonnay. On the nose is citrus and tart apple. The palate has razor sharp acidity, citrus, tart apple, lots of minerality and is very fresh. This wine tastes much more like a White Burgundy than a California Chardonnay. It actually reminds me of a Pluigny-Montrachet! Again, a delightful wine.

Next up was the 2011 Maison L’Orée Meursault Charmes.  As a white Burgundy freak, I was very excited to taste this. Rajat Parr is also a Burgundy freak! The wines of this region have always inspired him, therefore an opportunity to create a negociant house to help produce wines from this region was undoubtedly a dream come true for him. This Meursault Charmes (a Premiers Cru) has medium ++ acidity balanced by a wonderful creaminess. This wine definitely reflects it’s sense of place, while bursting with citrus flavors and finishing with baking spices.

On to the reds we went with the 2012 Domaine de la Côte Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir. I’m very picky when it comes to this varietal and oh boy, I wasn’t disappointed. On the nose are lively fresh flowers and lots of red fruit, especially strawberry, raspberry and cranberry. The palate confirms the fruit and has some good earthiness. Fermented with 50% whole cluster and 50% stem inclusion, this Pinot Noir never sees new oak. 2100 cases were bottled.

The last wine of the evening was the 2012 Domaine de la Côte Blooms Field Pinot Noir. With rose petals and ripe red fruit on the nose, the palate was quite lush with candied strawberries, dark cherries, some pepper and a touch of saline. That doesn’t surprise me considering this vineyard is located only 8 miles from the Pacific Ocean.  Fermented with 100% whole cluster and 100% stem inclusion, this is again aged in 100% neutral French oak. 500 cases were bottled.

All of the night’s wines poured were lovely. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for each of them. Rajat and his partners should be very proud, and have a very bright future in front of them!

Here are the links:

http://sandhiwines.com

http://domainedelacote.com

 

My New Favorite Party Wine!

I recently strolled into my favorite local wine store asking for some “every day” wines! I needed some decent bottles that come in at (or under) the $20 price range. I grabbed two bottles each of the six suggested to me.

My husband and I looked at the group and decided to crack open a California Cab for tonight. We chose the 2012 Matthew Joseph Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa. Comprised of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Merlot and 2% Malbec, this wine is dark garnet in color, the nose has delightful currant, ripe cherry, baking spices, and coffee, perhaps even mocha. The well-balanced palate confirms the fruit and spices, along with some wonderful flavors of chocolate shavings. The substantial finish brings lovely cassis flavors.

This “MJ” really fit the bill for a tasty wine that I won’t feel guilty about opening on a random Tuesday night. I’m going to be sure to stock up on some more for those nights when I’m home alone and don’t want my hubby feeling jealous, although he still may!!! It’s also going to be a great Cab to pour for an upcoming party we’re having.

This is definitely a fruit driven wine, with soft tannins and sweet vanilla. Now don’t go expecting a Bordeaux style wine. For a nice sipper and a great wine for entertaining, however, this 2012 Matthew Joseph Napa Cab can’t be beat. And it comes in at under twenty bucks! What’s not to like?

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