Tasting for Style and Quality

Identifying wine aromatics are important for tasting, as is honing in on its structure. Tasting for the MW, however, I’ve noticed I’ve had to add ‘tasting for style’ to my repertoire. The quality assessment is a key component of the Practical exams, usually worth even more points than absolute identification of the wine, so I pulled three styles of dry wine this morning in order to reflect on styles and quality of wine.



Frascati and Muscadet
Frascati is made in central Italy from Malvasia and Trebbiano, two of the most neutral grapes I know. Malvasia generally has higher ripeness and a fuller body, so blending with the higher acid Trebbiano makes for a pleasant wine. I thought this Frascati had an awful lot of aromatics (I probably shouldn’t have picked a Frascati ‘Superiore’, which I am guessing is a Frascati higher in alcohol, so will have higher aromatics). Starting with the Frascati, like I said there were more aromatics than I thought there would be. It was nearly tropical, indicating a warmer climate. The acid seemed to be high until I tasted the Muscadet. While still writing down components to a traditional tasting note, I concluded that the Frascati was a soft and refreshing wine and its relative neutrality on the palate would make it an excellent aperitif.

Muscadet always smells musty – nearly corked - to me. I believe that to be the lees talking. Aromatically, this wine was even more neutral, though I did get that pure lemon aroma and flavor. There was a bit of CO2 prickle on the tongue and really mouthwatering acid. My personal preference says this is not a very pleasant drink, but I could imagine it being a lovely mignonette for oysters.


Gewürztraminer
Here was the step up in style and quality (by design). A darker color suggesting more ripeness and/or extract, and textbook Gewürztraminer aromatics easily jumping from the glass: perfume, perfume, perfume, plus a little tropical note. The palate was softer and much fuller in body, which allowed for a longer finished compared to the two above. It also seemed slightly off-dry, a little more red apple (so again, ripe), and even had a little spiciness/bitterness on the finish.

Going from the Gewürztraminer back to the Frascati and Muscadet not only highlighted the more ‘noble’ nature of the Gewürztraminer grape, but also the higher quality: Gewürztraminer had a longer length that was layers and layers of tropical fruits and spices. It probably helped somewhat that, by design, the Francasti and Muscadet retail for around $13 and the Gewürztraminer was $22.


Maybe Too Easy
The tasting was designed to focus on different style and quality levels and that was definitely achieved. It was helpful to go about this tasting with the intention of quieting my analytical mind and focusing on the quality and the setting that such a wine of this style would be served. Next up will be a look at terroir and quality.

The wines:

* Borgo del Cedro Frascati Superiore 2010 $13.50, 13.5% abv

* Hautes Noelles (Serge Batard) Muscadet Sur Lie 2010 $13, 12% abv

* Paul Blanck Gewurztraminer 'Classique' 2010 $22.50 (for 750ml), 14% abv

Wine Basic Tastes and Structure

I’m terrified by the Practical in the Master of Wine exams, which is another way of saying I suck at blind tasting. I did about average (for me) in my tasting group this week, but I was disappointed and how little structural components I could get out of each glass. So I've prepared several mixtures to look at some of the basic structures that make up wines: sugar, acid, and alcohol.

I had three empty and cleaned wine bottles. For sugar I dissolved 3T in water then diluted it up to a 750ml. I used the juice of two lemons for acid and diluted it up to 750ml. And alcohol was represented by a half of a small bottle of vodka diluted to 750ml (so about an 11-12% abv solution).


Components

Sweetness: I was surprised to learn that sweetness, something I always looked for on the tip of my tongue as that’s what everyone says, wasn’t found there for me. Turns out I register sweetness on the back of my palate by my molars, though really the sensation washes over everything.

Acid: This is a very localized sensation on the sides of the tongue extending into the cheeks. And there’s also that unmistakable mouthwatering sensation that hits with acid. I heart acid.

Alcohol: This one is complicated. I definitely taste a bitterness (like almond skins?) towards the back of my palate, but I don’t get the ‘sweetness’ that many folks talk about with alcohol. I added another splash of vodka directly to my glass and that just made me gag. Texture-wise, alcohol certainly has ‘weight’, especially if you swish with water first to immediately compare. And it spreads around, i.e., it is not super-concentrated on any part of the tongue. But at the moment, I think I need to look for that bitterness to indicate higher alcohol levels.


Balance of Components

Acid/Alcohol (50/50): I suppose this showcased that elusive sweetness in alcohol. The mouthwatering nature of the acid was blunted by the alcohol mix, though possibly also by sheer dilution.

Sugar/Alcohol (50/50): Ok, unlike the last blend, this one showed no dilution of sugar, therefore the alcohol base does exhibit sweetness. Just not overtly. To me. The blend allowed the sweetness to wash over my palate (courtesy of alcohol) and when I immediately compared it to the sugar base, I was back to localized sweetness. Interesting.

Sugar/Acid (50/50): This is why good wine is so cool. Both the sugar and the acid were present and you could shift your attention back and forth between them. Balance defined.

Sugar/Acid/Alcohol (one third each): A crude version of wine. The acid made my mouth water and was tempered by the sugar, which was spread around by the alcohol. Otherwise, the flavor was disgusting.


More Practice is Needed

My solutions were pretty primitive for this exercise. I’ve dusted off my old copy of Baldy’s The University Wine Course, and in addition to my regular tastings, will try to get through the tastings presented in Schuster’s Essential Winetasting (which has been the inspiration of today’s exercise). At a minimum, I'm ready to pay a lot more attention to structures.

Master of Wine MYC Course Day

Wow.

I have a lot of work to do.

I’m grateful to have the opportunity to attend the NYC course day as it re-motivated me in my studies. While collaboration with other students and mentors are essential to getting through the program, the Master of Wine journey is largely a solo effort. And a chance for feedback while I’m still in the beginning stages of my journey has been really eye-opening.

The morning was spent tasting and really understanding how to make sure every observation you make about a wine actually concludes something that adds to your argument. Benjamin Lewin and Christy Canterbury totally made sense as the words came out, but my immediate execution was terrible.

We did a mock exam of nine wines. I added “hang myself” to my growing to do list. In fact, my tasting skills are so poor that instead of the dreaded running out of time, I finished early since I had nothing else to say. My book wine knowledge (especially when you leave France) is really weak (for example…ok, this Pinot Noir is probably from New Zealand...but not ripe enough for Central Otago…so…shoot, remind me where else they make Pinot down there?) Seriously.

The good news is I largely already have this information from my Diploma Unit 3 days. I just have to actually...ya know...learn it.

And practice. Writing for any length of time over three minutes hurts. And the tasting portion is writing for over two hours. And focus. Feeding the jukebox at Coyote Ugly until 2am the night before is probably not something I would do on exam day. That didn't help my focus.

Anyway, we then spent the afternoon on theory, and I felt better about that. We individually made outlines on a few questions and then discussed. Benjamin and Christy also pulled out a few past exam questions to illustrate how many questions appear again and again, and asked us to think about how we might change our outline in each scenario. Brilliant.

Overall, amazingly helpful, and I’m glad I can focus my studies with a little more precision and a lot more motivation before attending the residency in Napa. And harakiri thoughts aside, I really am excited to be in the program.

Playing for keeps

So it's official. While they haven't run my credit card for the full $3,550 in first year fees (and yes, I'm checking my Visa balance several times a day), I received an email that says I have been accepted as a first year candidate for the Master of Wine program (programme, if you’re British).

As promised, you can read my application essay below. I hope these will get easier in the future.

I have been trying to 'study' a little since I sent in my application in August, though without a mentor (should be assigned this week) or any other solid direction, I have just been taking terms from the syllabus, defining them, and writing down some relevant points including positives, negatives, and any controversies. Since you could be revising a topic like "oxygen" for months, at this point I have limited my sources to:

* The Oxford Companion to Wine edited by Jancis Robinson
* Understanding Wine Technology by David Bird
* Viticulture - An Introduction to Commercial Grape Growing for Wine Production by Stephen Skelton
* My old WSET Diploma study guides (great summary tables!)

So I have a solid start to papers 1 and 2 (viti/vini). I still don't have many real-world examples to support arguments or whatnot, but now that a skeleton is in place, I will be talking and researching to fill in those examples while I really understand the wine world and actually start revising old exam essays.

In order to dig into the controversies a little more, I'm reading Malcolm Gluck's "The Great Wine Swindle" and Michael Veseth's "Wine Wars: The Curse of the Blue Nun, The Miracle of Two Buck Chuck, and the Revenge of the Terroirists" and incorporating those into notes as they fit. I've got a few other books to reference for general myth-busting or just to generally make sure I understand all the issues going on in the wine business that I just may take for granted as 'that's just the way it is'.

The good news is that there is a Fall Course Day in New York next Monday, so I should have a better sense of how to spend my study time after that.

Yes, I have gotten lazy/broke and have not been doing much in the way of focused tastings as of late. I expect to get more guidance on this front at the Course Day as well.

In the meantime, I'm going to break into some vintage bubbly and you can ready what I had to say about "Examine the principal factors within the direct control of the vineyard manager which affect the quality of the grapes". Enjoy!


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Quality grapes are the starting point for quality wine, and the cliché that wine is made in the vineyard is true. There are several factors that a vineyard manager can control directly to impact the quality of the grapes produced -- including soil preparations, treatments to the vine and canopy throughout the growing season, and, most importantly, measures relating to the harvest. To achieve quality fruit, the vineyard manager will be looking to make decisions (in a given existing vineyard) that will produce grapes that will reach their full phenolic maturity (for the style of wine they wish to make) and are free from rot and disease.

:: Soils ::
Starting at the ground level, the proper amount of moisture in the soil is an essential input photosynthesis and helping the grapes reach maturity. In areas where it is legal to do so, a drip irrigation system will help when Mother Nature is not. Once an irrigation system is established, several programs to give the grapes the minimal amount of moisture to survive should be employed, including reduced deficit irrigation (where water is only applied when needed, as measured by the moisture content in the leaves of the vine), and partial rootzone drying (where only one side of the vine (and thus roots)) are watered. Etude winery in California employs the former irrigation strategy, which they believe contributes significantly to the quality of grapes that they produce.

Management of weeds is important to grape quality, particularly in younger vines whose more shallow root systems would have to compete with the weeds. While helpful to protect against erosion, younger vines might benefit from not having to compete with weeds for water and nutrients while producing grapes.

:: Vine ::
The manipulations to a vine are key to producing quality grapes. Pruning not only helps to maintain the size and shape of a vine, but pruning back unnecessary vegetative growth will have a positive impact on energy that the plant puts into growing the grapes. Related to pruning, the management of the overall canopy is also key to allow proper air circulation and sunshine (or not) to reach the grapes during the growing season. For example, the vines at Chateau Beausejour in Montagne-St-Emilion are regularly trimmed throughout the season to keep vine vigour in check, and once verasion is taking place in the vineyard, they employ ‘leaf pulling’, where leaves are pulled away from the shading the fruit zone, allowing as much sunshine as possible to reach the grapes and help them reach maturity. Having a trained and available workforce to carry out these individual tasks throughout the growing season is a consideration that will have an impact on your budget for the type of wine you are making.

Along with pruning and canopy management, the training of the vine that is appropriate for the varietal is important. Many training systems (particular those that are spur-trained) include permanent wood that would not be easy for a vineyard manager to change season-to-season, but whatever the existing shape of permanent wood, training the vine to open up the canopy (i.e., maximize the air circulation and sunshine or shade) will help to allow work to be done more easily in the vineyard and reduce rot in more humid areas.

Winter pruning will also directly impact the yield of the vine during the following growing seasons and should be employed with care. Winter pruning entails not only cutting away the prior year’s growth, but also selecting how many buds will remain for the following years’ growth. This has a direct impact on yield and thus, a direct impact on quality.

Finally, in relation to the vine, it bears to mention where time and finances allow, grafting an appropriate clone for the given climate (and macro-climate) in a vineyard would also enhance the quality of the grapes.

:: Harvesting Options ::
The most important decision a vineyard manager (and winemaker) makes all year is when to harvest the grapes and is everything to achieving the quality level in grapes that is needed. Finding the right moment when sugars, acid, and tannins are in balance is important, as well as how the fruit is harvested. Where it is practical, machine harvesting would increase quality to the extent that a large vineyard area can be picked in a relative short period of time. This would be especially important where coming rains threaten the crop. Note, however, that the vineyard needs to be specially spaced and on a relative flat land in order to use machine harvesting. On the other hand, hand-harvesting would be ideal for helping to separate the best fruit from damaged or less ripe fruit. This is clearly a more expensive option for harvesting, but if the budget will allow for it, you can train workers to help bring in the fruit as unblemished as possible. Sometimes, as in the steep terraces of the Mosel that Weingut Leitz works, hand-harvesting is the only option.

Employing a sorting table at the winery would also help to choose the best grapes to increase quality of your wine, though the vineyard manager would be more responsible for harvesting the fruit out of the vineyard.

:: Conclusion ::
There are many decisions a vineyard manager must make in order to grow grapes at a specified level of quality. From the soils, to vine and canopy management, and especially harvesting timing and options, a vineyard manager has to think through and choose each method according to the budget and style (and quality) of the wine that they are going to make.

The waiting begins...

I hope I’m not jinxing myself, but I send the application and Fedex said it was delivered in time last week. My essay was: "Examine the principal factors within the direct control of the vineyard manager which affect the quality of the grapes produced." In classic MW style, the question seems quite simple, but it really taxed my knowledge-retrieval and imagination to put something logical on paper. And at that, a week later I’m still remembering relevant things I could have included. Frustrating.

I’ll post my essay after I find out whether they will let me in or not (judging from prior years, I should know by early October. They implemented a rolling-application essay topic schedule, but I don’t know if that will impact when decisions go out).

In the meantime, back to revisions. Wish me luck!

Varietal(-ish) focus: Châteauneuf-du-Pape blends

Question: can a group of $30-ish Châteauneuf-du-Pape-inspired blends from around the world distinguish themselves?

Massena ‘Moonlight Run’ 2006 (Barossa Valley) $27, 14.5% abv

Composed of 54% Grenache, 24% Shiraz, 16% Mataro (Mourvèdre), and 6% Cinsault all from vineyards that range in age from 85-150 years old. Each parcel is fermented and aged separately before final blend is made, then it is aged for 18 months in seasoned French oak (old hogsheads).

Deep ruby with a bit of an alcohol white rim. The whiff of sweet perfume is what stood out on the nose. At first I guessed sweet oak, but as they age in old French hogshead, I’m now guessing the perfume of Mourvèdre was showing itself. Very curious. Alcohol was more apparent on the palate, and it clashed with the acid right away before the acid disappeared and I could get to the fruit bits (which were ripe dark fruits). Tannins were well-integrated in the mix and velvety. The finish was on the long side and was a thick, lovely layer of juicy dark fruits. And I swear vanilla!

Bonny Doon Vineyards ‘Le Cigare Volant’ 2006 (California) $33, 13.3% abv

Always amusing to read the ingredient labels of Bonny Doon wines. This is made from 43.6% Syrah, 43.5% Grenache, 11.7% Cinsault, 1.1% Mourvèdre, and 0.1% Carnignane. Also used in the winemaking process was untoasted oak chips and French oak barrels.

This was the most saturated in color, nearly to the rim. The Bonny Doon exhibited the same dark fruit aromas, but this one had a slight more ‘funk’ to it and a touch of floral. I’m guessing that’s because this wine had the highest concentration of syrah, a rather unstable fellow, and one that shows off something like Brett more readily. It added to the complexity of the nose. There was a faint trace of vanilla oak.

Body, acid and alcohol were all balanced together at about a medium intensity. The tannins were medium+ and suede-like. The dark fruit on the palate was softer (less sour). The finish was medium and made of tannins and a bit of fruit.

Domaine St. Gayan 2006 (Gigondas) $28, 14.5% abv

I chose the Gigondas as my French ‘Châteauneuf-du-Pape’ so the price point would be in line with the others. I guess I should have kept looking since this is more of a traditional Côtes du Rhône blend, but whatever. It’s made from 75% Grenache, 15% Syrah, and 5% Mourvèdre from vines with an average age of 55 years (some of the Grenache vines are over 100 years old). It goes through a typical long fermentation in neutral tanks and then spends a year in old foudres.

Lightest in color of this group (medium- ruby with alcohol rim). Also the most subdued in aromas and much more earthiness (dry dirt) and dark fruits (plums and black cherries). It was dark. I could also smell alcohol. The palate had medium+ acid and medium+ alcohol which eventually gave way to sour dark fruits. The last observation points me directly to the old world. Tannins were fine-grained (but ‘square’…rocky soils?) and medium+ intensity. Finish was all sour dark fruits lifted along with the tannins.

PS – I visited this estate in early July. The picture on the label is what it actually looks like there. No kidding. Well, except when you’re actually there it’s in color.

Observations

The old world version stood out immediate with its sour dark fruit profile. In a blind situation, I would have probably questioned the alcohol as a marker, but we’re talking about the Southern Rhône here. It was also the least extracted of the bunch.

Then again, going back to my first point above, perhaps if I actually found a Châteauneuf-du-Pape instead of the Gigondas, would my results have been different? Châteauneuf-du-Pape can be pretty ripe too.

The riper fruit profiles of the last two clearly landed me in the new world. I’m not entirely sure that the luxuriously velvet tannins of the Massena would have helped me to get to Australia (note to self: time to do a Grenache varietal focus). Nor did the lower alcohol in the Bonny Doon tell me that it was from California. The Bonny Doon spoke mostly about its cepage (being higher in Syrah…and I believe that Grenache is generally higher in alcohol than Syrah, so being higher in Syrah helped to lead to lower alcohol).

Another damn tasting where I’m not sure I gained much. It might be the design. And it might be the end user. Hhhmmm…

Winery Profile: Channing Daughters

Ta da!

Channing Daughters is probably my favorite winery on the east end of Long Island and not just because winemaker Christopher Tracy is an MW candidate. The range of styles the winery offers is exciting and delicious. The east end of Long Island has producing wine for over 35 years now, and while some styles of wine are starting to establish themselves (I love the local Sauvignon Blancs and Cabernet Francs), I appreciate that the team at Channing Daughters is really pushing the envelope. They’ve planted a number of atypical varietals and make wines ranging from the typical fruit-driven & refreshing to single-varietal rosés (including one from Refosco), skin-fermented whites, ripasso reds, orange wines, and even a Madeira-style Merlot dessert wine!

I was captivated while interviewing winemaker Christopher Tracy and soil scientist Larry Perrine, and I highly recommend a visit to Channing Daughters if you ever find yourself in the Hamptons.

This article was published in the January 2011 issue of Sommelier Journal. Better late than never.

Bordeaux Master-Level Exam

The online programs of the French Wine Society are a model for truly interactive wine education. I passed the French Wine Scholar exam last year and signed up in March for the Bordeaux Master Program as Bordeaux is just an area I don’t know much about, and looking at past MW exams, it seems pretty important. The program was led by the Dewey Markham Jr., author of 1855: A History of the Bordeaux Classification and ran for about three months with 20 live, interactive webinars and weekly reading assignments.

First off, Mr. Markham has that rare ability to take utterly confusing topics like the Côtes of Bordeaux or the classification systems and break them down to their historical origins and then lead the student to put these pieces back together again to understand what’s going on today. His core curriculum was supplemented by webinars from guest lecturers including Roger Bohmrich, MW (covering Garagistes and the economics of Bordeaux), Charles Curtis, MW (two centuries of vintages, and collecting & investing in Bordeaux), and Joel Butler, MW (Bordeaux terroir and the meaning in appellation). The quality of the lectures as well as the reading assignments (over 125 pages) were excellent. I also opted to attend an all-day review that included some well-organized tastings of Bordeaux wines (by soil type and by AOC).

Secondly, the technology was amazing. I hate to date myself, but I didn’t realize online education went beyond passively watching a presentation recording. The webinars were live and the technology such that if you had a question during the presentation, you could ‘wave your hand’ and the presenter would answer your question live. Sure, it could make the presentation go longer than an hour (and it often did), but all presentations were available online afterwards as well. And anything not answered could be posted to the bulletin board which all instructors were active on.

Finally, I just took the final exam this past weekend, opting to take it in person in Washington DC (there was no NYC provider, and there’s an upcharge to take the exam online). The exam consisted of a map identification exercise (10 points), 50 multiple-choice questions (50 points), and five short essay questions (40 points). I don’t think all of the exams have been turned in yet, so I’ll just say that the questions were fair and presented clearly. And I should have studied more.

It looks like the next Bordeaux Master Class will run in May of next year and I obviously recommend it. They also hinted that there is a Burgundy Master Class in the works for 2012 as well. Rhône and Provence also have Master Level programs, but these are limited to a detailed study manual and online exam.

So I’ll find out in a few weeks if I passed.

If you’re an essay grader reading this blog post, may I say WOW! Have you lost weight? You look fabulous!! And that color is absolutely charming on you!

Varietal focus: Riesling

Set up
Hooray for Riesling! And looking at past examination, there’s an extremely good chance that it will show up again soon! I’ve tried to pull dry examples today – two from the old world and two from the new world.

The Wines
* Leitz ‘Eins Zwei Dry’ Riesling Trocken 2008 (Rheingau) $15, 12% abv
* Domaine Mittnacht ‘Les Fossiles’ Riesling 2009 (Alsace) $20, 13.5% abv
* A to Z Riesling 2007 (Oregon) $15, 12.5% abv
* Hay Maker Riesling 2009 (Waipara) $10, 12.5% abv


The Leitz had a noticeable CO2 prickle on the palate, which led me to think it was a new world wine using CO2 to heighten acidity. This was also the most dry of the bunch. The CO2 and dryness were my clues to support that it was new world, Oregon. Wrong! The flavors were some of the least intense in the bunch, which should have been my clue to this wine coming from the coolest climate. There was also a yeasty creaminess about the wine… I wasn’t quite sure what to make of that.


Mittnacht was easier to pick to me. Its appearance was a touch more intense than the other three, something I have seen before in Alsatian wines. It was off-dry, but barely so. Smoky on the nose, and then the palate was focused and medium intensity of lime, sour apples, and sour pears. The more extracted appearance, the sour nature of the flavors, the intensity and focus of those flavors lead me straight to old world, Alsace.



The A to Z was strongly petrol on the nose (and turned out to be the oldest wine in the flight at four years). This wine had the highest perceived RS in the flight, and was also the lightest in body. I focused on those two bits of data to conclude old world, Germany. What I chose to ignore was the fruit basket that appeared on the palate. My notes said lime, apple, pear, strawberry, tropical (?). Cool climates don’t usually do that, duh.



Finally, the Hay Maker was petrol and pears and spicy on the nose. Just having a basket of aromas on the nose got me thinking new world. The palate again, lots of juicy fruits to choose from propped up with a backbone of acidity. The fruits were not precise, but lovely, and that also led me to new world, New Zealand. Tech sheet: 24g/l RS.


Observations
Colors, with the exception of the Mittnacht were similar, and that turned into a valuable clue. Aromatics overall were not as important clues as were the palates: dry, off-dry, and by how much? Intensity of flavors. Muddled or precise. Those were the most helpful to get me to new world or old world. All of the wines had similar medium- to high-acidity and medium alcohol. The wines were similar in body as well, but I misread the CO2 in the German wine.

I also learned I should really look for the teach sheets before I conduct the tasting. It’s annoying not having the information right here to help guide what I’m trying to learn.

So overall, two right, two wrong. I’ll take it.

Latterals: Sangiovese versus Tempranillo

Set Up
Don’t laugh. I get Sangiovese and Tempranillo mixed up in blind tastings. A lot. If I were being really honest? I would throw Grenache in this party as well. And I’ve confused an extracted Pinot Noir for Chianti more than once. But I’m gonna try to tackle this one at a time.

The wines
Bibi Graetz ‘Casamatta’ 2009 (Toscana IGT) 12.5%, $11
Viña Herminia 2009 (Rioja) 14%, $12

The Casamatta has medium intensity of bright dark fruits and some florals. The palate was dry with alcohol in check and a medium+ acid with medium+ rustic tannins. The flavors were dark fruits, medium ripeness, and a sour savory tomato character.

This wine is 100% Sangiovese from young vineyards in different zones around Tuscany (including Sieci, Siena and Maremma) and is fermented (including MLF) in steel tanks before being transferred to barriques where it remains until bottling (I haven’t found an indication of how long that is).

Viña Herminia was much more muted on the nose with a real dry earthiness along with dark fruits. And again, the palate was more earthy and plumy than the Sangiovese. Tannins were higher here but were finer and sour notes carrier through the medium+ finish.

I had more trouble finding information on this wine, despite the winery’s slick website. It seems like there could be some Garnacha in this wine (up to 15%), but it could also be 100% Tempranillo. The winery also employs both American and French oak, but I don’t have the specifics on this wine.

Observations
Both wines displayed plums and a spiciness, but the Tempranillo was more muted and earthy. Both had a similar medium intensity of ruby color, but the Tempranillo was slightly more concentrated. Both were bone dry on the palate with similar medium+ acidity.

There were differences in their aromatic profile was stronger as flavor profiles: more savory/sour for the Sangiovese and more dried/earthy for the Tempranillo.

Both had almost the same amount of tannins, but the nature of those tannins were different: I felt the Sangiovese tannins were much more rustic over the finer (but still rather burly compared to say, a Pinot Noir) tannins of the Sangiovese.

Overall, I’m sad to report that I’m not sure this tasting help cement anything about these two varietals to me. I wonder if it’s a price point issue. Maybe I won’t be so cheap next time...

Quality flight: Mendoza Malbecs

This beat-up palate is brought to you by allergy season.

Set-up
While Malbecs from Argentina don’t show up often on the actual Master of Wine exams, I thought this would be a good place to practice quality levels within the same region. Malbec is not native to Argentina, but the area is more well-known for the grape than in France, where the grape has historically had to make up at least 70% of the wines of Cahors. Before the winter freeze 1956, Malbec used to play a more significant part in the blends of Bordeaux and some research suggests that the clones used in Argentina are decedents from the Bordelais vines rather than from Cahors or the Loire.

Located in the fat west of the country, Mendoza is the largest and most-important wine-growing region in Argentina (about 70% of its annual production). Luján de Cuyo is a subregion within Mendoza that features higher altitudes and more temperate weather.

Without tasting, I would expect the wines to display ripe plums, dark fruits, perhaps some floral, but above all, ripe (not cooked) fruits clearly indicating New World. I would think the palate would show medium acid, but higher tannins. Basically, I think of Malbec as a Merlot with more going on with the palate – acid and grip. I would suspect that the Altos would be more about upfront fruit and a quick finish, the Felino to show more interesting things on the nose, and a more defined palate, and the Bramare to build upon that, perhaps displaying some minerality? Plus oak.

The wines
Altos Las Hormigas Malbec 2009 (Mendoza) $13, 14.2%
Felino ‘Viña Cobos’ Malbec 2009 (Mendoza) $20, 14.9%
Bramare ‘Viña Cobos’ Malbec 2008 (Luján de Cuyo) $39, 14.9%

(Note the Bramare is a shiner – the front label says Cabernet Sauvignon and the back label says Malbec. It is indeed a Malbec.)

The Altos showed pepper and plums and a smokiness at a medium intensity. The palate had firm tannins, medium(-) acid and a medium(-) finish, with the simple taste of sour dark fruits. Both the medium(-) finish and linear flavor profile indicates that this is a high-volume production wine, and the lowest in quality in the flight.

This Malbec is the “main production” wine according to the Altos Las Hormigas website. The grapes are from different sites, vinified separately before the final blend. Stainless steel fermentation and aged for three months in the vats with French and American oak insertstaves. Annual production: 700,000 bottles.

The Felino displayed more dark plums, a slight bit of vanilla (oak?) and dry earthiness and a slight burn from alcohol. The vanilla softened the impact of sour dark fruits on the palate, and firm tannins were still on display. The length was a bit longer here (medium) and were carried by the tannins and fruit, indicating a better quality wine.

American winemaker Paul Hobbs is a partner in the Viña Cobos Winery which produced both the Felino and Bramare.The wine is 100% Malbec. The vineyards are from the smaller appellations of Luán de Cuyo, Maipú, and Valle de Uco at an elevation of 2,300 to 3,770 feet, yielding 4.3 to 4.6 tons per acre. Fermented in stainless steel with a native MLF in barrel that took four months to complete. It was then aged eight months in American and French oak, 21% new. Annual production: 262,320 bottles.

The Bramare had an overt use of sweet vanilla oak with plums and a slight floral perfume. The use of oak could indicate a more expensive wine. The oak made the attack smooth and sweet but the palate of this wine had the highest impact of acids, tannins, and flavors of vanilla and plums. Despite intensity, there was nothing angular so the wine was in balance. The use of oak and the balanced and clear flavors on the palate shows that this is the highest quality wine in the flight.

Bramare’s fruit was from the prime subregion of Luán de Cuyo with an elevation of 3,000 to 3500 feet. Yields here are 2.0 to 3.1 tons per acre. Stainless steel fermentation with MLF in barrels with native yeasts completed in three months. Eighteen months in 22% new American and 15% new French oak, the balance in used oak. Unfined and unfiltered. I couldn't find production numbers.

Observations
On the second round, when I tasted them blind, there was a distinct yeasty character on the Felino that I didn’t pick up before. Lees stirring on a red wine in Mendoza? Maybe a result of the MLF? That was the factor that helped me decide between the Felino and the Altos (the sweet oak on Bramare gave it away quickly).

What surprised me from this tasting was that despite high alcohol, I didn’t perceive it as much on the palate. I’m not sure if that was due to the fact that they were all in the same zip code, the fact that I’m in the middle of allergy season and everything hurts anyway, or that it was all in balance. I wonder if there was more RS leftover to soften the blow and my damaged palate didn’t pick up on it this time around. May have to try a few of these again…

Duck confit at Flea Market Café

Ya know that restaurant you pass by in your neighborhood all the time and keep saying “it’s so cute – we should go there”? Flea Market Café is that place to me. I finally went in and not only is the space absolutely adorable, and it’s staffed with servers who care, but it has duck confit on the menu (what did you think this post was going to be about?) And not a crazy preparation, this little café serves simple classic French dishes, so the set is simply French fries and a green salad. Did I mention this place is about a two minute walk from my apartment?

All of my requirements have been met in order for this café to become “my” local restaurant.

Ok. Well.


The French fries were great – with just a few overcooked (which I dig) and seasoned perfectly. The food runner even asked me as my plate landed whether I prefer mayonnaise instead of ketchup (duh). The salad was well dressed, not over doused, not naked, with a simple vinaigrette.

Aaaaaaaand I should end my post there. The duck confit was meh. The saltiness was in check, and that’s about the best thing I can say. The skin was rendered completely out so no pockets of fat at the corners like I enjoy. The meat itself was dried out, and whatever caused it to toughen out so much also subtracted the slightly gamey ducky favor in the meat.

The wine list was brief and listed by varietal and wines were from France and the US. In addition, they had a bottle of Guigal Côtes du Rhône open when I was there that they offered by the glass.

I will return someday, because it is a charming space, prices were reasonable, and there were enough people in the restaurant on a quiet Monday night to suggest that they do serve good food (mussels seemed to be the popular dish that night). I just can’t recommend the duck confit.

Flea Market Café
131 Avenue A between St Marks Place and 9th St.

Duck confit at Casimir

First off, this is the first French café I’ve been to in New York City where I really felt I was back in Paris: beat-up furniture, traditional menu (including an affordable wine list that only included the color of the wine and its AOC), and marginal service delivered by a French-speaking staff. Only the three top of dudes next to me in oversize Ranger jerseys bring me back to my Avenue B east village reality.

I started with a special that day: Cesear salad made with kale. The bitter, tough greens against creamy dressing worked really well. In fact, I much prefer it to romaine in the Cesear. But let’s talk about duck:



First off, the entrées come in two sizes: small and large. My server couldn’t explain to me how one divides a single duck leg in half (I actually don’t think she really understood my question), so I went for the full sized. I’ll just have to go back, in the name of science, to report on how a half of duck leg is delivered.


This is among the very good duck confit I’ve had starting with the seasoning. This one was not super-salty so the gaminess of the duck came through. And everything else hit just the right note: tender meat – check; well-rendered crispy skin – check; traditional set (in this case, garlic-roasted potatoes and frisée salad) – check. The sweet element I insist on came from balsamic-caramelized onions scattered throughout the potatoes. There was diced bacon on the frisée salad that I thought was a bit of overkill next to duck, but hey, it’s bacon.

The wines by the glass were rattled off by the server by AOC so I went with a glass of Bergerac Rouge, which I later discovered was from Chateau Laulerie (a wine carried by my employer). I was craving a Chinon or the like, so this was as close as I got. The other red wines by the glass were all from southern portions of France (Côtes du Rhône, Minervois, and a Vin de Pays which the server didn’t know the grapes nor the greater region it came from).


Overall, it’s a solid duck confit in a très Français setting (did I mention a garden out back?) at an affordable price. All that plus it’s only a five minute walk from my apartment means that you’ll be able to find me there several nights per week. Who knows. I might even try something other than the duck confit (they also had duck breast on the menu…)



Casimir
103 Avenue B (between 6th and 7th Streets)

Latterals: The Spicy Reds

Sight
All three wines exhibit a medium to medium+ intensity of ruby possibly suggesting intense wines of higher extractions. Wine #2 has a more pronounced watery rim, which could indicate a higher level of alcohol.

Aromatics
On the nose, all three wines have medium to medium+ intensity of aromas, with many notes of baked and jammed fruits, which indicated these wines came from a warmer climate. Aromatics on wine #1 include dark cooked berries, spice, and some smokiness. Wine #2 has more aromatics of red jams. Wine #3 smells of figs and port. Wines #1 and #2 have light aromatics of vanilla, suggesting oak influence.

Palate
On the palate, all wines show higher levels of alcohol and all lack high acidity, supporting the view that these wines come from a warm to hot climate.

Wine #1 has spicy fruit on the palate with medium- acidity, medium+ alcohol, and medium- burlap tannins. This wine is probably most prized for its structure.

Wine #2 is dry, though seems sweet on the attack suggesting very ripe fruit. The wine has medium acid, high alcohol, and a medium+ finish of fruit and vanilla, and heat from alcohol. This wine is definitely from a hot climate.

Wine #3 is also dry but seems sweet on the attack, suggesting very ripe fruit. The wine has medium acid, medium+ cottony tannins, and a medium- finish of cooked figs and dark fruits.

Conclusions
Wine #1 is a Malbec from a warm climate (Mendoza, Argentina) because of its firm structure and spicy fruit. The firm structure would also suggest Cabernet Sauvignon or Nebbiolo, but neither would would not exhibit such spicy fruit, and Nebbiolo would not have such a saturated color. The Malbec also distinguishes itself from the Shiraz and Zinfandel because it is lack of overly ripe fruit.

Wine #2 is a Shiraz from a warm climate (Australia) due to its high alcohol, soft texture, and very ripe fruit. This description could also fit a warm climate Grenache or Merlot, but Grenache is typically not as saturated in color. I rule out Merlot because I would expect more cocoa and espresso characteristics to accompany the ripe fruit aromas.

Wine #3 is a Zinfandel from a warm climate (California). The tell-tale aromatics of figs and port lead me here and the medium+ amount of tannins is likely from oak influence, a common technique used for Zinfandel. The firm structure could also suggest Malbec, but I would expect spicier fruit from Malbec.

The wines
Wine #1: Altos Las Hormigas Malbec 2009 (Mendoza, Argentina), $13, 14.2% abv
Wine #2: Woop Woop Shiraz 2009 (Australia), $13, 14.5% abv
Wine #3: Joel Gott Zinfandel 2008 (California), $18, 14.4% abv

How’d I do?

Channing Daughters, Pinot Grigio 2009 (Long Island) $20, 12.5% abv

::: peeking out :::

Hi.

Remember me?

You probably thought this blog was dead.

Well, it was mostly dead. See, there's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is still alive.

And as such, I still have things -- well, wine mostly -- that I want to talk about. For instance, this 2009 Channing Daughters Pinot Grigio.

This wine is 100% Pinot Grigio made from grapes coming from both Channing Daughters' Bridgehampton estate on the South Fork of Long Island (aka The Hamptons) and Mudd's vineyard on the North Fork. Aromatics are heavily weighted towards orchard fruits (especially golden delicious apples and pears) and pretty white flowers.

I found the palate to be medium weight with juicy acidity -- not too searing, not too soft. The wine was aged in a mix of stainless steel and various-sized oaks that helped elevate this to a classy sort of Pinot Grigio (not to be confused with the water-like cheap & cheerful versions all to prevalent in the marketplace). There was also a gentle wash of Lemonheads outside shell (ya know? The sweet outside part? Not the sour middle?) and bitter zest on the finish that I really enjoyed.

I opened this wine at home with a pu-pu platter from the local ghetto Chinese takeaway joint. The caramelized plummy spare ribs were a bit too intense (but I was dreaming of a Loire Valley gamay for that) but the Channing Daughters wine stepped up as a refreshing counterpoint to the fried chicken wings.

That's right. BBQ spare ribs and fried chicken wings. Only authentic Chinese takeaway for me.