My favorite New Year’s celebrations? Doing the unexpected with great friends. This year I had two evenings of bubbly tastings.  We tasted the newest trends in the global wine market, Rosé of Malbec and Torrontes/Chardonnay from Argentina, Moscato from California, Moscato and Prosecco from Italy and even a Yellowtail from Australia.

It’s an easy and fun party. Just ask your friends to bring a bottle from whatever country they want, the imports are well under $20 and the quality is just fine.  And, if you don’t like it straight, make sparkling cocktails or save it for the morning-after Mimosa or Bellini.  A bartender that attended made us a classic cocktail with sparkling wine, sugar and bitters. Serve finger food and don’t worry about perfect pairings.

The winner was Reginato Sparkling Torrontes Chardonnay.  It’s 80% Chardonnay, 20% Torrontes. The sweetness of the Torrontes really comes through.($17)  They also make a pretty Rosé of Malbec.

Terramia Moscato was the runner up, pear-baked, vanilla custard, dark cherries and grapefruit.  No flaws with a long dry finish.

One of my favorite Prosecco’s Villa Sandi Il Fresco Prosecco (Folio Wine Partners, $12.99) is a great choice.

Allure Moscato won the prize for the prettiest bottle. It tastes like Maraschino cherries & grapefruit. Allure Pink Moscato is popular among the younger crowds.

New Year’s is a great time to just have fun and do something new.  Enjoy!

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Silkbush Mountain Vineyards

Earlier this year I met Dave Jefferson, the founder of South Africa’s Silkbush Mountain Vineyards.  We enjoyed a lively conversation about trends in the global wine market in a LinkedIn forum and then met at his local office here in California. His company owns multiple investment properties including vineyards and wineries in Napa and Sonoma.  At that time, he gave me two bottles of Pinotage from his Western Cape vineyards, a 2008 Lions’ Drift Pinotage and a pre-release of his 2009 Pinotage (same brand).

I’ve been intrigued by South African wine but know relatively little about it.  I was pleasantly surprised by the 2008 but blown away by the 2009–it is stellar wine.

Dave and his local partner, Anton Roos, and their multi-lingual and multi-cultural staff, farm 215 acres of vineyards under a dramatic mountain called, Sybasberg (Anglicized to Silkbush).  The location is beautiful and close to the popular wine tasting region, Stellenbosh. Dave has been to South Africa well over two dozen times since 1994 and if you are planning a trip or just curious, he has created a detailed resource for wine lovers, “Planning a Trip to South Africa“.*

Until I get to South Africa, I’ll settle for enjoying Silkbush’s Lion’s Drift Pinotage. The 2009 arrived in the U.S. in late October 2011 and is available through several retailers and distributors.   This is a wine that drinks well by itself and with food, in the evening or afternoon.  I would bring it to a party, a lunch date, pair it with appetizers or serve it at Thanksgiving or Christmas. It’s enticing; after tasting it for review, I found myself wanting to enjoy a full glass. If you want more detail, Palate Press published a very accurate flavor profile of the 2009 Lion’s Drift Pinotage.

*You can stay on the property if you are a VIP (wine journalist, distributor, retailer, etc.) or paying guest. For information about where to find Silkbush’s wine or to stay at Kingsbury Cottage, contact Dave Jefferson.

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Silkbush.com, South Africa Winery

My good friend and neighbor, Dave Jefferson, is a long time wine industry veteran.  We’ve enjoyed many discussions about the wine business, locally and globally.  At one of our first get-togethers, he outlined several daunting issues that South African wineries face.  He also described best practices in South Africa’s wine industry, one of which is an across-the-board commitment to the people who live and work on the “wine farms.”

A paper was released recently that gave the impression that people should not support South African wine because of worker abuses. I am concerned that people will wrongly stop drinking South African wines (or other wines globally) based on false impressions made by this paper.

My message is simple: freely and without hesitation, enjoy wines from South Africa, you will be helping people there, not hurting them.

If you are interested in the topic, here is what Dave has to say about the real situation in South African wineries. Dave’s text was originally published on Vinography.com as a comment.

My NorCal based company and our managed affiliates have been growing wine grapes on 700 acres in Napa and Sonoma for 38 years, and on 215 acres in the Western Cape of South Africa for the past 11. Accordingly, we are very aware of living conditions for farm workers in both areas. Since the subject today is South Africa, I’ll confine the discussion to our vineyard in Breedekloof and my personal experience visiting hundreds of “wine farms.” After adding 3 additional living units in 2006, we now have 10 worker families living with us; 9 couples who are active workers and a retired couple. Including 6 children, we are housing 26 souls in above average living conditions. While the housing did not have electricity when we acquired the farm, we soon obtained service from the local utility, paying for poles and transformers, and provide it for free to our people. Besides lights, some of the people use electric heaters in their cottages and some heat with wood stoves; there is plenty of firewood on the property, too. The water on the farm is abundant, clean, sparkling, and running. Three additional men live off the vineyard in homes on adjacent vineyards and in a nearby town; therefore, we have 21 total very adequately housed workers.

Since we have a very stable workforce, it was not difficult to carefully train them to use safety precautions when using harsh chemicals (which we also minimize). All these workers are salaried 12 months per year, receive three weeks of paid vacation, numerous government mandated holidays, and free health care. They work 45 hours per week and receive a new set of work clothes every six months. (We used to employ more off farm workers but the acquisition of a used grape harvester machine four years ago has reduced our harvest worker needs substantially; however, the steeper slopes are still picked by hand by our own people.) We have also built a small day care center for the children to use until the are ready to attend elementary school. About six years ago there was an attempt to unionize the local farm workers; a number of our workers signed up, paid initiation fees funded by bank loan, and then the head organizer ran off with all the union funds, and left the workers stuck with their unpaid loans. Almost needless to say, there have been no further attempts at unionization.

Over 17 years, I have made 27 trips to the Cape and spent well over a year in total time on countless vineyards there, including at least 100 owned by other farmers and winery owners that we know well. Based on my first hand industry experience, for any organization to assert “rampant violations of South Africa’s own labor and health laws, including inadequate safety precautions to avoid worker exposure to toxic chemicals, poor or no access to drinking water or toilets for workers, harsh treatment at the hands of employers, poor living conditions for many who reside on the farms where they work in the vineyards, and systematic attempts to prevent any sort of collective action or negotiation on the part of the workers” is irresponsible and simply not true or fair. Certainly there must be a few bad apples among some 3,700 employing farmers, but I have yet to see them. I would be surprised if 1% of growers were significant moral and legal violators, and there are well enforced laws to constantly clean up bad actors. Most farm workers are also well aware of their rights to decent conditions and collectively will not hesitate to report abuses.

Dave’s winery is Silkbush.  Support Silkbush & other South African wineries’ efforts by enjoying their fabulous wine.

Best online source for South African wines Cape-Ardor.

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It Begins in the Vineyard

I have repeatedly promised never to write anything negative on my blog but I feel compelled to save budding wine drinkers. I recently tasted Charles Shaw Chardonnay and for a few more bucks, you can do better. I promise. Two Buck Chuck was created as a consumer brand, just fermented grapes in a bottle, no winery, no family history, etc.  Making products for profit while not caring about quality is not unique to 2 Buck Chuck.  The good news is there are plenty of other brands that do care about quality, for just a few more bucks.

One label that is super easy to find is Cono Sur, from Chile.  Cono Sur imports 1.7 million cases to 65 different countries.  Cono Sur has wines under $10 as well as over $10, you can easily replace your Charles Shaw reds and whites as well as enjoy super Pinot Noir and red blends for under $30.

An added benefit, the company is run by an innovative group of people who care about the environment.

Our fruit is harvested in vineyards farmed in the spirit of organic management or sustainable agriculture, two comprehensive agricultural systems that allow us to take advantage of the healthy and clean environment. Cono Sur.

A few of my favorites…

Cono Sur, 2009 Bicycle Viogner Fresh, zippy, great aromas, serve cold. Widely available in the US (5,000 cases). The Bicycle brand sells for under $10.

Cono Sur, 20 Barrels Limited Edition Pinot Noir, Casablanca Valley 2009 Tried too many watery Pinots? This one is full, smooth & complex. New world fruit, old world wine making. This wine is around $20 USD, very inexpensive for Pinot Noir.

Cono Sur Vision Single Vineyard Block 68 old vine Pinot Noir, 2009 Cono Sur’s fruitier style. Cherries & soft tannins. (Around $15 USD)

Look to other producers to replace your 2 Buck Chuck, especially wines from around the world. Many of them are great quality, care about the environment and just happen to be inexpensive.

** no family trees, no dusty bottles, just quality wine is the tagline for Cono Sur Wines.

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Nieto Senetiner Vertical Tasting: 8 Vintages / 10 Writers

In April 2011, I was one of ten people invited to Argentina’s very first vertical tasting of aged Bonarda.*  It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and writing about it makes me giddy all over again.  Even though being the first and getting the scoop so-to-speak that aged Bonarda is excellent, the story that I want to share goes much deeper.

There is no ambivalence about the chosen market position among top Argentina producers: they intend to deliver world-class wines.  They are dedicated to competing against the best of any country and region.  The wine is strictly Argentinean with Argentinean soil, sunlight, history, wine making practices and taste profiles.  Since 1991, when Argentina began allowing imports and exports, certain winemakers set their sights on the international marketplace.  They invested in quality people, facilities and began scientific experiments to root out the best combination of soil, rootstock, growing conditions, wine making and delivery to market systems.  Twenty years seems to be the magic number for these producers for the fruit of their labors has paid off.

One of these top producers, Nieto Senetiner, while delivering many exceptional wines (more posts coming), is a premiere producer of Bonarda.  Vitaculture practices are precise…high altitude (3,100′), cool climate, drop fruit for low-yields and no cover crop to let the sun reflect back onto the grapes.  Then, the real news, they age the wine.

The Nieto Senetiner Bonarda vertical tasting included wines from 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008.  My favorites? 2000, 2002 and 2003; this was the line where the wine had moved into a super-luscious category.  The hue and nose were beautiful and flawless.  2004 was distinct but similar to the 2003 and the 2005 held delightful promise.  In my opinion, the 2006, 2007 and 2008 need to lay down.  After the tasting, I took the 2000 and the 2002 to my table to taste with lunch.  Unfortunately, the 2000 died right there at the table (confirmed by my friend, preeminent wine educator, Karen MacNeil).  This is part of the whole aging experiment that I find so fascinating.  Jeff Mausbach, an American ex-pat and Argentina specialist said that he felt the 2004 and 2005 show strength not shown in the original 2000, so we still don’t know if 10 years is the limit for Bonarda. Parenthetically, after lunch the 2002 was still drinking well.

Current vintages are available for under $30  (750 ml).   You don’t have to be a collector to enjoy this experiment but you should have a wine refrigerator.  Depending on how much room you have, buy 6+ bottles, open one in the near future to see what it tastes like, then open them periodically over a decade.  You can do this with fewer bottles but you take the risk of a bad bottle, so it’s always a good idea to hold back 2 bottles for each year that you want to try an aged wine.  Continue to buy a new vintage every year and soon you’ll have a rare and large collection of aged Bonarda. Look for older vintages at Winesearcher.com.  To find a store near you that carries Nieto Senetiner wines, search at Winebow.

Note to trade, somms & journalists: The folks at Nieto Senetiner are considering taking this tasting on the road, so stay tuned.

* Bonarda wines can be lighter-bodied and fruity, full of cherry and plum flavours, with light tannins and moderate acidity. However with concentrated fruit from older vines, and especially when oak aged, Bonardas can also be big, fruity, dense and tannic wines with deep colour and fig and raisin characteristics. In most Argentine vineyards, Bonarda is one of the last grapes to be harvested. (Argentina Wine Guide)

Winemaker Notes & Awards

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After years of concentrating on California wines, I’m wholeheartedly drinking and learning about wines from emerging markets.  My wine refrigerator is now stocked with Chilean Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Austrian Grüner Veltliner, Greek Assyrtiko, South African Pinotage and Argentine Malbec.

The style and flavor of these international wines are fascinating.  Here’s some tips and recommendations for your own international exploration pleasure:

• I’ve found that food really brings out the light style of the Austrian and Greek white wines. Look for the Assyrtiko grape from Santorini and Grüner Veltliner from Austria.  There are many enjoyable wines for under $20.
• Don’t let unfamiliar grapes fool you into thinking they are going to taste unfamiliar.  You’ll probably associate a foreign grape with something you already love. For instance, the Charming 2007 Grüner Veltliner reminds me of a rockin’ Sauvignon Blanc.
• South Africa has fascinated me as I’ve watched so much dramatic change in the last 20 years. The signature grape is Pinotage, a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault.  Good Pinotage has the earthiness that I love in a good Pinot Noir. I highly recommend Silkbush’s Lion’s Drift 2009 Pinotage that will be available in Summer 2011. I received a pre-release sample and it rocked my world. (Review to come soon.)
• I suspect consumers have no idea how fantastic Pinot Noir from Chile’s Leyda Valley can be. My favorite so far is Leyda Las Brisas 2009 Single Vineyard Pinot Noir.  Stylistically it reminds me of Oregon Pinots, ripe black cherries, dark with a honey texture. (Look for my post soon about a perfect pairing.)
• It’s pretty much an open secret that I’m in love with Argentina. There are so many great values and excellent wines, enjoy Malbec but also look for red blends, Torrontes, Bonarda (a very special post coming soon about aged Bonarda), sparkling Malbec and Chardonnay. In other words, explore the world of Argentine wines. (Links go to some of my favorites.)

In case you are wondering, I’m not really leaving California in the physical sense, but if you stop by my house, we can transport ourselves to almost anywhere in the world with some fine wine and matching food.

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Enjoying wine is like quietly watching a sunset, embracing the first warm day of Spring, or cozying up to a roaring fire in a comfortable chair.  Alana Gentry

Recently, Wines from Santorini sent me some Assyrtiko, a popular dry white wine from Greece.  It was a new grape to me and I didn’t know a thing about it. When I smelled it, I thought of warm baking bread. When I tasted it, I was transported to a white cliff overlooking the brilliant blue Mediterranean.  I felt the salt spray on my face and thought of the most perfect light scallops melting in my mouth.  I’m not making this up, for a wonderful brief moment I was no longer in my house.

When this experience happens, wine makers say that the wine has captured the terroir, the sense of place.  It’s like magic.  Maybe wine lovers fall in love with a region or a grape because they’ve seeking to recapture a magical moment. When I met German winemaker Bernard Huber, he described his favorite vintages with the phrase, “it’s like a dream,” now I know what he meant.

The bottle that gave me such pleasure? 2009 San Torini Winery Assyrtiko. They recently changed their name to Artemis Karamolegos Winery. It retails for around $20. Contact their importer for information.  I also enjoyed the 2009 Boutari Assyrtiko More Info & Purchase .

Planning a wine tasting trip to Santorini? Check out Wein-Plus Magazine.  Also, Karen MacNeil’s, Wine Bible provides an excellent description of Greek vine growing practices.

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Carmenere, Maipo Valley, Chile, April 2011

Chile is a fascinating sliver of land. I first paid attention to Chile when a friend introduced me to Isabelle Allende and her husband years ago.  The famous Chilean writer of the House of the Spirits and other novels, was reportedly influenced by Pablo Neruda, Chile’s Nobel Prize winning poet.  Neruda died many years ago, but I visited one of his fascinating homes in Santiago.

The land of Chile is doubly fascinating when you discover it’s diverse wine regions.  Grapes are grown at the high altitude sunny slopes of the Andes, next to the cool hills of the Pacific Ocean and on the edges of the waterless desert. In terms of  public awareness, Carmenere is to Chile as Cabernet is to Napa.  But in fact, Chiles’ many microclimates support ideal growing conditions for Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Chile’s most popular exported variety is Cabernet Sauvignon.  It’s easy to find in the USA and has an excellent value to quality ratio.  TerraNoble makes a Cabernet Sauvignon Gran Reserva ($18.99) that is food friendly. The 2008 was shy and pretty on the nose unlike big Cabernets that leap out of the glass like ghosts of dead grapes. The TerraNoble winemaking team aims for fresh, modern, elegant wines with fruit flavors that highlight each variety.  The Gran Reserva achieves it. There are many winemaking styles in Chile, so my recommendation (as always) is to purchase some and try it.

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View from Catena Zapata

Sunset in Argentina

A few pics taken with my Nikon D50, 18mm – 200 Nikon VR lens.  This is Nicolás Catena’s winery.  He was the 2009 Decanter Magazine’s man of the year.

Nicolás Catena is the Robert Mondavi of Argentina.  His story is well-known so I won’t repeat it in full.  In summary, he took it upon himself to significantly upgrade Argentina’s wine making and market position after following his father’s footsteps in the viticulture business. Catena is the pioneer of high altitude grape growing and modern Malbec.  Listening to him talk while tasting a 1995 Malbec and 1997 Chardonnay was a highlight of the Winebow Media Tour to Argentina.

Because of Nicolas Catena and a handful of other producers, Argentine wine (Malbec and other grapes) is in a similar place in history to California in 1976 when California wine bowled the world over at the infamous Paris tasting.  The quality is that good.

Look for more articles here over the next  few weeks as I reveal the secrets and breaking news about Argentina’s current position in the worldwide wine market. I’ll also tell you which wines to buy, drink and hold.

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Laura Catena & Girl with a Glass Talk Wine Writing

Argentinean wine is a winner for casual drinkers, enthusiasts and experts.  It’s not difficult to find low-priced, excellent wines; it pairs well with meat and home-cooked traditional American food as well as other ethnic dishes; and when you seek out top-notch Argentine wine, it is inarguably world-class.

I started buying Argentine wine in 2002, during my 5-year course in wine and food pairing. Like many enthusiasts, I knew that  it was well-priced and that if I was going to buy Malbec, make sure it was Argentinean.  Looking back at my notes as a budding oenophile I wrote…competes with a cab, smooth long finish; rich, full, balanced; dry like a cab with flavor but not too fruity; just right, buy more.  The prices ranged from $5.99 (Bevmo 5-cent sale) to $38 for a bottle of Salentein Malbec (ordered at Boca, an Argentinean Steakhouse in my neighborhood).  Most Argentine bottles in my database are between $11 – $15.

If you are new to Argentine wine, my recommendation is to pick up a few bottles of Malbec.  If you’re looking for budget wine, get an inexpensive one and pick up a Reserve too.  The Reserve will introduce you to the winery’s idea of a slightly “better” wine–your palate is the ultimate decider of course.

If you are an enthusiast, Laura Catena authored a must-read book, Vino Argentino, An Insider’s Guide to the Wines and Wine Country of Argentina.  Belonging to the fourth-generation of an Argentinian-Italian winemaking family, Laura is a San Francisco emergency room doctor, a mother of three, and owner of her own wine brand, Luca. Her father is Nicolás Catena, a pioneer of modern winemaking in his country and owner of the acclaimed Bodega Catena Zapata label.

I love this book because it captures exactly the same information that I like to share about Sonoma/Napa–it’s truly an insider’s guide. Here’s a blurb about the book from the publisher, Chronicle Books:

Vino Argentino is an insider’s travelogue to the Argentine wine country. It is part viticultural primer, part cultural exploration, part introduction to the Argentine lifestyle. It is about the ascent of the mighty Malbec grape into the stratosphere of world-class wines. It is about single-lane roads lined with vineyards and patches of brush set against a breathtaking backdrop of snow-capped Andes peaks. It is about schoolchildren in white uniforms holding hands on dirt sidewalks, and gardens overflowing with flowers and fruit. In this book, I will take you exploring through the countryside of my childhood, so that you come to know its towns, vineyards, restaurants, and inns as intimately as I do.

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